Charlottesville, Virginia. Situated in the center of the state and home to the University of Virginia. It’s a city that the Anderson family has called home for many years. “My mother has been in this house for over 30 years,” Pamela Anderson told Dateline. “I brought all three of my babies to this house.”
Pamela says it’s the perfect place to raise a family. “When I say it’s such a beautiful little city, it is. I love Charlottesville,” she said. All three of her children were born and raised there. Her middle child, Sayveon, was the perfect picture of a mama’s boy. “Every time I see him, I mean, just nothing but hugs,” Pamela said. Sayveon was the family baby, until his little brother was born. “Sayveon was my baby for 18 years,” Pamela said. “People would tell me, ‘You baby that boy too much, Pam.’” But she never minded.
“When he hit high school, it was work, football, and Kroger,” Pamela said. He was a hard worker who never caused her trouble. “Kroger is the only job he ever had.” Until Sayveon decided to join the military in 2020, that is. It came as a surprise to his family. “Just out of the blue, he just came to me and told me, you know, he wanted to go to the military,” Pamela said.
Pamela remembers the day her son left. He was 19 years old. She knew nothing about the process and had no clue what to expect. “He just left with the recruiter. I’m thinking he’ll come back, and no. He went straight off to boot camp.” Pamela says he didn’t even have an overnight bag. From the moment Sayveon’s military career began, Pamela made sure her son felt her love. “I packed him the biggest care package,” she laughed. “They had yelled at him when the package came in the mail ‘cause it was so big.”
Sayveon is an Army Specialist stationed at Fort Bragg, outside Fayetteville, North Carolina. Pamela says that for the first few years he was away, she visited him monthly to check in. She remembers the first time she was able to visit him, shortly after Sayveon graduated from boot camp, she packed her whole family up in the car, grandkids included. “It was so emotional. He — he cried so bad. He missed me so much. I was so proud of him.”…