Community Government Sports

City honors Alan Anderson, the ‘heart and soul’ of local canoe and kayak sports

Under gloomy skies, young paddlers climbed in and out of kayaks and canoes Saturday at the Ancich Boat Dock in Gig Harbor.

That in and of itself wasn’t unusual for the members of the Gig Harbor Canoe and Kayak team. They train rain or shine. Nor was it unusual for coach Alan Anderson to be out there barking encouragement to the youngsters.

Like the tides, the ebb and flow of the kayakers coming and going, loading and unloading is a routine that has filled 24 years of Anderson’s life.

Alan Anderson Boat House

And now, because of lobbying by his community of paddlers, what was known as Ancich Park boat storage will be known as the Alan Anderson Boat House. The paddlers made their pitch to the Gig Harbor City Council on Jan. 26, which approved the name change last month. A sign has been designed, but no date has been set on when it will be installed at the boathouse.

The hardy group of paddlers Anderson coaches want to credit him with their ability to believe in themselves. Despite facing a life-threatening illness — which Anderson, 70, said he would rather not talk about — he is still out at the early morning practices. He is still encouraging the paddlers to remember that their Olympic-sized dreams will get them far in life, said Alyson Mrozinski, the Gig Harbor Canoe and Kayak team head coach. 

Gig Harbor Canoe and Kayak Racing Team coach Alan Anderson helps Danielle Platt with her form on a rowing machine on Feb. 7, 2026. Photo by Suzanne Roig

“There’s so many little ways he did that,” Mrozinski said. “He was dedicated to goals and modeled that. His stories, whether they were one minute long and silly or 10 minutes and philosophical, are allegories of life. 

“I found out later as an adult, he’d lesson-plan these stories.”

Early origins of sprint Gig Harbor kayaking

Anderson founded the Gig Harbor Canoe and Kayak Club in 2002 in a parking lot by the water. He wanted to introduce youth to competitive sprint kayaking, a sport that has taken off in Europe, but not in the United States, said Missy Hill, a parent member of the club. 

Gig Harbor offers a perfect training ground for kayaking and canoeing with its protected waterways, she said.

“Through Alan’s leadership, the club grew from a small grassroots effort into a nationally and internationally recognized team, with athletes consistently representing Gig Harbor at region, national and world-level competitions,” Hill said in testimony before the Gig Harbor City Council as it considered changing the name of the boathouse. 

Naming the boathouse after Anderson, Hill wrote, recognizes Anderson’s contributions to youth sprint paddling.

‘A bit embarrasing’

Anderson shrugs off the praise.

“It is a bit embarrassing to have my name on a building,” Anderson said.  “I want to thank the community of pioneering parents and athletes who built this team and let me hang out with these kids,” Anderson said. “Everything you see here, the dock and the boathouse, is a tribute to the people of Gig Harbor who fight for what they believe in.”

That kind of humility made it easy to put forth a resolution to rename the storage facility, Gig Harbor Mayor Mary Barber said in an email. Anderson is credited with developing and sustaining the Narrows Challenge, an event that has been held for six years now bringing together paddlers of all kinds to the area. 

“Alan Anderson shows us how one person’s commitment can shape generations,” Barber said. “Events like the Narrows Challenge don’t happen by accident. They happen because people like Alan build strong roots in youth, water safety, and leadership. I am grateful our community includes exemplary residents and friends like Alan.”

Alan Anderson, founder and coach of the Gig Harbor Canoe and Kayak Club, spoke during the ceremony marking the new paddlers dock at Ancich Park in 2022. A young club member dared Anderson to wear bunny ears. Jeni Woock

Dreaming big

On that early Saturday morning, paddlers hopped in and out of the water. Some shivered as they rinsed off their equipment after spending two hours in the water. 

Anderson pointed to two young paddlers who were awaiting their turn as examples of the future of the club. 

“These girls here are the real deal,” Anderson said. “They’re Gig Harbor athletes pursuing a dream of the Olympics. That’s the mission of the club.  I’m just their guide.”

Ava Stokes, 11, set her sights on the 2032 Olympics in sprint kayaking. 

“I want to go as far as my life will take me,”said Stokes. “This sport means everything to me. It’s my passion.”

Anderson started his athletic journey as a marathon runner and a mountain climber. He discovered kayaking as a way to strengthen his upper body. 

Gig Harbor Canoe and Kayak Racing Team founder Alan Anderson pictured winning one of several national championships.

He enjoyed it and was successful in races, which led to his own dreams of becoming an Olympic athlete. That was in 1984.

 “I was a mountain man who became a paddler,” Anderson said. “I forgot all about mountain climbing.”

Drive and dedication

And today it’s all about paddling, coaching and finishing some projects. He’s been nominated for the Frosty Westering Excellence in Coaching Award. The award, from the Tacoma Athletic Commission, is named for the former longtime Pacific Lutheran University football coach.

Bob Platt, president of the board of directors that oversees the club, saw the award as recognition for Anderson’s drive and dedication to the sport and the community of paddlers he’s nurtured.

“Alan is the heart and soul and energy of this sport here,” Platt said. “If it wasn’t for Alan, there wouldn’t be a team. This boat house may have been a thing, but he’s the engine. I aspire to be like coach Alan.”

Gig Harbor Canoe and Kayak Racing Team coach Alan Anderson at the Ancich Park storage facility, soon to be named the Alan Anderson Boat House, on Feb. 7. Photo by Suzanne Roig

Hill, who testified before the City Council in favor of renaming the facility, has been with the paddle club since the beginning, when she brought her daughter to practice. Hill’s daughter is now 33 and  now brings her own son to practice.

“I see Alan and how he sets goals and achieves them,” Hill said.

“He is a remarkable person who has a belief in each athlete that they can achieve their goals. He forms really special relationships with each athlete.”