by Jessica Tomhave
Bob Erickson is a man of many smiles. A visit to his apartment in Sartell’s Country Manor can stun a visitor with visual reminders of his long life: stories that span 90 years cover the tabletop in envelopes and albums; framed pictures cover the walls, making the small room feel as large as the life Bob Erickson has led, one brimming with good cheer.
It is said that smiling is a universal language. No one exemplifies that better than Erickson. His life is vast, not in the sense of fame and fortune, but in how he has lived it.
“We lived frugal,” he said with smiling eyes about the 58 years he shared with wife, Evie, who passed away from Alzheimer’s in 2018. He said Evie “learned to love” his sense of humor. She is still very much alive in memory in the small apartment where Erickson currently lives. Her talents and presence cover his walls with her wood carvings and paintings; her clay handprint from 1948 above his kitchen sink and her portrait by the stove.
Piles of photographs and keepsakes spread across a small table in a tiny kitchen tell the story of a large life well lived.
Erickson grew up on a farm near Willmar. Living with his mother and older sister on $48 a month and spare change earned from furs and pelts, walking literally two miles to school in snow – well, it was not an easy life. But then and ever since, Erickson learned how to take things in stride and how to connect with life, developing strategies to avoid boredom.
“I’ve always got to do something interesting or I get bored,” he said.
With a mind constantly active, Bob has strung together a lifetime of stories that all have the same running thread – laughter and smiles. Erickson is a reminder that maybe the best measure of a man’s life is not so much in accolades or popularity, but in how many smiles he awakens in others.
Always willing to try something new, Erickson, when in his 60s, followed a whim after seeing a television advertisement to appear as an extra in five feature films. Some of these movies starred famous actors such as Bill Paxton and Michael Rapaport. Erickson “played” a corpse in “Drop Dead Gorgeous” with Kirstie Alley and Ellen Barkin.
Another wild experience happened when he was attending Ag School in the Twin Cities. The year was 1951. He was asked by his wrestling coach to practice-wrestle a man dubbed “The Axe,” who had already qualified for state competition. Erickson figured they wanted “The Axe,” a heavyweight, to practice on someone like him, Erickson, who was slim and lightweight at 165 pounds. It was a way for “The Axe” to prepare for the big match with someone small, fast and “farm-strong.”
“Real” life can be more tragic than the saddest movies: Mike Hunt, a dear friend of Erickson’s, was the last known surviving command pilot of the famous WW II bomber plane, “Memphis Belle.”
Erickson shares enough incredible stories to fill many books. In fact, his wealth of experiences actually led him to write five field guides and one picture book on Minnesota outdoor adventures: hunting, fishing, trapping; and a book about Alaska, where he and Evie visited their daughter, Lynae, for many years. His books were recently distributed by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, sharing with next-generation outdoors people the wealth of knowledge and good ol’ Minnesota “mishap” moments he amusingly recounts in his books.
Erickson enjoys writing and relaying information accurately and fairly. He wrote as a freelance writer for The St. Cloud Times from 1962 to 2021. With his nearly 60 years of dedication to objectivity and facts to better inform the public about hotbed issues, current affairs, community policies, politics and government, Erickson is not only a man with a great sense of humor, he is a person with a deep sense of responsibility to others.
To say he has accomplished a lot would be an understatement. With his endless curiosity and restless energy, he is not one to sit still for long. His hard-working generosity shines through the nine years he spent spreading goodwill among the people in the Dominican Republic, where he volunteered his skills as a civil engineer after Hurricane George, surveying and building projects two weeks each winter during his company’s off season. He shared many smiles across the miles in the Sauk Rapids Lions, where he was an active member for several years, raising gifts and donations that Anderson Trucking hauled free of charge to the Dominican Republic when Erickson was helping there.
In many other ways Erickson has seized opportunities to spread good will. He paid the way for a group of military veterans to visit Alaska. He caters a yearly lunch of Kentucky Fried Chicken for the entire staff at St. Cloud Surgical Center since befriending them while on his daily walks after Evie died. After a routine hip replacement, he pranked hospital nurses with an oil can and lubrication instructions while recovering. And he continues making medical staff laugh on his weekly visits to the Twin Cities for a longitudinal glaucoma study in which he currently participates. Anytime, anywhere, under stress, pain, sadness or uncertainty, he brings bouquets of smiles.
At the tender age of 6, Bob lost his father in a factory accident. Ironically, this marked the beginning of Bob spreading his unique brand of happiness. After his father’s death he remembers feeling timid around people. In order to connect, young Bob began using humor. Others’ laughter became his comfort and confidence. He realized quickly that laughing together broke the ice in almost any situation and brought with it a feeling of ease for everybody. Take for instance, duck hunting season when in grade school teachers would say, “Bring us a duck!” So Bob the little jokester left a literal duck on his music teacher’s stand, sending the whole room into uproarious laughter.
Fast-forward to 2019 when Erickson created smiley buttons with the message “SHARE A SMILE WITH A STRANGER” to honor his late wife and to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s, the disease in which “everyone becomes a stranger.” Each button was like a personal smile from Erickson. Those buttons have made it into nearly 24,000 hands during these five short years. Countless good feelings now spread across our community, state, country and world from a once-timid little boy who learned to connect with people by bringing smiles galore.
Erickson has accomplished so much in his 90 years, as his fascinating stories reveal, and he has no plans of slowing down anytime soon. It is in the countless smiles rippling happily outward that Bob Erickson’s life was – and still is – immeasurably large.
Bob Erickson stands before his apartment wall filled with wooden plaques created by his late, beloved wife Evie.
These are some of the books written by Bob Erickson.
These are photos showing the many toys and gifts gathered by Bob Erickson and others before he embarked on a trip to the Dominican Republic after a hurricane devastated that island and its people. Erickson helped in many ways, including by using his expert engineering skills.
