Erika Anderson

Erika Nicole Anderson, the beloved daughter of proud parents Jeffery & Elizabeth Dommond was born on December 5, 1989, in Atlanta, GA. Along with her older sister Pamela Danielle Dommond, Erika was an honors student in the Georgia public school system, earning scholastic achievement awards and graduating with honors from Stone Mountain High School. Erika, a self-proclaimed education enthusiast, earned Bachelor’s degrees in Mathematics and Mechanical Engineering from Spelman College and Georgia Institute of Technology, respectively, again graduating from both schools with honors. Erika had been inspired by her grandmother Selonia Smith Blatch to attend Spelman, making Erika a 5th generation Spelman alumnus in an unbroken family chain of Spelman alumnae. While progressing through her college studies, Erika worked as a math tutor and teacher’s assistant, serving as the Academic Excellence chair on the National Society of Black Engineers’ executive board. Not only was she active on campus during the school year, she also spent her summers gaining real industry experience interning at NASA and GE Aviation in Alabama and Ohio respectively. After graduation Erika, along with her long-time sweetheart Chadwick Alexander Anderson, moved to Beaumont, Texas where Erika worked at ExxonMobil as a Reliability Engineer. The couple married in Texas but after 1 ½ years into the marriage, sadly Chadwick died unexpectedly. After his tragic passing, Erika persevered with her career at ExxonMobil for several additional years. Erika obtained a Master’s Degree in Data Analytics at Texas A&M University. She continued her enthusiasm for education by tutoring local grade school students in math, and joining various associations whose mission was promoting careers in science. In furtherance of this goal, Erika served as an If/Then Ambassador for the American Association for the Advancement of Science (“AAAS”). AAAS selected one professional female engineer from each of the 50 states to promote the sciences to young people, especially women. Erika’s enthusiasm for encouraging others to pursue science careers emboldened her to realize that: “When passion meets purpose, the opportunities are endless.” By July 2022, our family enthusiastically welcomed Erika back home to Georgia when she accepted a Reliability Engineer position with Georgia Pacific. Little did we then realize that our time with her would be so short. Though Erika is departed in body, her luminous and loving spirit shall continuously shine in the hearts of our family. In addition to her many cousins, colleagues, friends, and fellow Spelman alumnae, Erika is survived by her parents Jay & Liz Dommond, sister Pamela, nieces Ma´Kayla, Drea & Erilyse, her grandmother Geraldine Watson, her Uncle & Aunt, Paul & Roberta Blatch, her Aunt & fellow Spelman alumnus Pamela Blatch, her Uncle Michael Dommond, her Aunt Lynette Dommond, her mother-in-law Stacie Hawkins, brother-in-law Chancellor Gregg and sister-in-law Tenaya Hawkins, and a host of other family and friends too numerous to list. Our family gives thanks and praises to our loving God for having brought Erika into our lives and for allowing her to uniquely impact the lives of the many people she encountered. We thank each of you for your loving support through this difficult time. Thank you and God Bless you all. Final services are entrusted to Gregory B. Levett & Sons Funeral Home, Scottdale Chapel, 351 N. Clarendon Avenue, Scottdale, GA 30079. Celebration of Life Services for Erika Anderson will be held on Saturday, October 7, 2023 at 1:00 PM. These services will be recorded and streamed live. If the event is interrupted at any time due to technical issues, the entire event will be uploaded and available to view later in the day. Please copy and paste the link to share, or simply click on the link to view the event. https://vimeo.com/event/3762702

Tributes

Erika Anderson

December 5, 1989 - September 20, 2023