Graham Anderson was born in Bradford, England in 1929, the son of businessman and magistrate Colin Anderson. The family moved to Canada in 1940 and Graham completed his education on this side of the pond. He attended UBC and did graduate studies at the University of Oregon, subsequently taking summer courses in Siena, Rome and Venice, as well as closer to home at the University of Victoria.

Employment

Graham's first job was with the Royal Bank in Victoria, but he later shifted to a seafaring role as purser on several of the BC “Princess” steamships. During his time at university, he served as an officer in the Naval Reserve, which led, on occasion to his teaching sailing to Sea Cadets in Victoria. He enjoyed the experience so much that he switched vocations and became – as he has remained – a teacher. He joined the staff of the Shawnigan Lake School in southern Vancouver Island in 1957 and has worked there ever since – teaching a number of subjects, including History (his main subject), Latin and English. He is currently serving as the Senior Master Emeritus.

Interests and Hobbies

Besides heraldry (which we will come to later) Graham has a wide range of interests. He is a keen sailor, scuba diver, skier and archer, who also reads widely when not engaged in outdoor activities. He enjoys travel – particularly in Western Europe and the Middle East – and has acted as tour guide for numerous student groups.

Heraldic Interest

Graham's interest in Heraldry goes back to the 1940's, and he still has the books that intrigued him in his pre-teen years. He joined the Heraldry Society of Canada in 1980 and within a year had arranged a College grant of arms for his school. A couple of years later, in 1983, he obtained his own arms, via matriculation of a posthumous Lyon Court grant to his father. He started the Heraldry Proficiency Course in the same year, passing the second level in 1985 and earning his Licentiate in 1990.

Society Involvement

Graham has been actively involved with the Society since he joined. He was elected President of the BC/Yukon Branch in 1987 and was awarded a Fellowship in the Society later in the same year. He became an active member of the Society's Board of Directors and was elected Second Vice President in 1993 and '94. The following year he was appointed to the job for which he is perhaps best known, as the Society's Chief Examiner, responsible for our Heraldry Proficiency Course and examinations – a job he held for some nine years, until 2004.

Heraldic Design and translation

In addition to his contribution to Heraldic education, Graham is equally well known for his work as an actual herald. In May 1988, just before the formation of the Canadian Heraldic Authority, he obtained a Lyon Court grant of arms for Collingwood School in West Vancouver, and has been going at it steadily since, designing arms for individuals, institutions and municipalities at an amazing pace. In 1993, he was appointed an Heraldic Consultant to the CHA and, to cap a most distinguished armorial career, was created Cowichan Herald Extraordinary by Governor General Roméo LeBlanc in 1999. Since then he has not let up. As described in the 2008 Winter issue of Gonfanon (which featured some of his institutional creations), Graham has designed – and had granted – well over fifty armorial achievements during his amazing career. About twenty of these have been for institutions or municipalities, the remainder for individuals, many of them members of the Society.

In addition to his work in designing arms, Graham has also put his classical training to work in the business of translating mottoes for the CHA. He has translated over seventy mottoes, including those for such illustrious clients as a Governor General (HE Ramon Hnatyshyn), the Province of Manitoba and the Ontario Provincial Police

Honours and awards

• 2007 Meritorious Service Award, Royal Heraldry Society of Canada
• 2004 Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire
• 1992 Grant of Arms, Canadian Heraldic Authority
• 1990 Licentiate of the Royal Heraldry Society of Canada
• 1987 Fellow of the Royal Heraldry Society of Canada