Photo: Contributed

A new unsung hero has been recognized by the Rotary Club of Penticton-Okanagan.

Bob Anderson founded the Friends of the Oxbow advocacy group a decade ago with two neighbours who shared a vision of protecting local Penticton oxbow land from in-filling. Their advocacy led to the City of Penticton installing an interceptor to catch sand and dredging sediment in order to save the oxbow's ecosystem.

Anderson's quiet, untiring work earned him an Unsung Citizen of Penticton award from the Rotary Club on Feb. 13, as well as Paul Harris Fellow recognition in honour of the Rotary founder. 

The Unsung Citizen award is bestowed on citizens of Penticton who go above and beyond under the radar in the community in service of humanitarian causes.

Anderson began his philanthropic career after retiring in 1997 after 18 years as the purchasing agent at Penticton Regional Hospital. He began volunteering with the Okanagan Gleaners in Oliver with his wife, and the taste for volunteering didn't stop there.

For the past six years, Anderson has contributed to the North Okanagan Valley Gleaners Society near Vernon and the Canadian Food for Children organization in Penticton, assisting both in acquiring used medical equipment and extra supplies to be sent to impoverished areas worldwide.

Anderson has also volunteered at the hospital since retirement with spiritual care and Interior Health Life-Line installations.

The Rotary club said in a release that Anderson "epitomizes Rotary's 'service above self' motto and is therefore a truly worthy recipient of Rotary's Unsung Citizen of Penticton award."