No matter how many individuals appear in the pages of each edition of Keys Weekly, there are always so many more of our community members who deserve to be recognized. In an effort to shine a spotlight on more of the incredible individuals who live and work in these islands, Keys Weekly is proud to present our Neighbor of the Week feature, dedicated to celebrating a community member with each issue.
Our neighbor of the week is Paul Anderson, who is now in his 40th year of teaching. He spent 31 years in Georgia public schools before making his way to Florida, where he currently teaches full-time at Marathon High School. Over his career, he has taught music, band, chorus and other subjects across all grade levels, including time as a college adjunct. He holds three degrees in music education from the University of Georgia. Beyond the classroom, he and his wife, Jackie, are celebrating their 40th anniversary this December. They are proud parents to four adult children and grandparents to one granddaughter, Elowen.
What brought you to the Keys? My wife and I moved to the Keys in the summer of 2024. After retiring from years of teaching in Georgia and spending several years in part-time band roles, I was looking for a new opportunity. Having fallen in love with Marathon during previous visits, my wife suggested checking the area, and finding an open band director position made the move a perfect fit.
What is your favorite thing about living in the Keys? I like the slower life pace, the people and the general vibe here. It almost feels like I am on vacation year-round.
What is the funniest question one of your students has asked you? I took my high school band from Madison County (Georgia) to Washington D.C. on a performance trip, and the standing joke was that we always pointed out the Pentagon every time we passed by. When we got back, one of my students asked, “What’s the Pentagon?” That was 30 years ago and I still remember that student’s name!
What is your favorite board game and why? It’s hard to pick just one, especially with a collection of nearly 100 board games that I love playing with my kids and siblings. I’m drawn to strategy and war games like Axis and Allies, chess and Stratego, as well as sports games and modern classics like Catan and Ticket to Ride. For me, it’s really about the mix of strategy, fun and time spent around the table with family.
If you were given $1M ,what would you do with it? Pay off all my debts and give most to my kids and my siblings/nephews/nieces. Then I would buy an RV and explore the United States.
What Netflix series did you last binge watch and why? My wife and I recently binged seasons 1-3 of “Ted Lasso” to get refreshed for the new season, though we have to watch the new episodes as they drop. Outside of that, I’ve been keeping up with “Reacher” and “Slow Horses,” and I’m over a year into a massive chronological rewatch of the entire “Star Trek” franchise.
What is one thing you always have in your car? I always have plenty of napkins, just in case!
What is an unpopular opinion you hold, but you don’t care? I define sport as physical activity that is decided by a score, and not by judges. In other words, gymnastics, figure skating, cheerleading, marching band, diving and even boxing is not a sport (under my definition) since the winner is always (or almost always) decided by one or more judges. That doesn’t mean they aren’t athletic or difficult to do well. I would classify these as athletic activities as opposed to a sport. I know, it’s weird, but at least I’m consistent, and it doesn’t offend me if you believe otherwise.
What’s one thing most people don’t know about you? I write a college football blog (paulprattleson.blogspot.com) during the season that includes 15 days of preseason previews covering all 138 FBS teams and 10 days of previews of each of the conferences. During the season, I write four days a week, reviewing the games, presenting my weekly Power Rankings, presenting interesting stats, and then giving my winners for all the upcoming games. I am correct on about 73-74% of my picks, but I don’t do gambling. I’m also a big fan of science fiction and fantasy novels.
Know someone else who would be a good “Neighbor of the Week?” Email keysweeklyjen@gmail.com.
