A short story about Anne titled “The Power of One” appeared in the December issue of University of Washington Magazine.
Read “The Power of One” here
Note: The article says Anne was a “married mother of two” but I am 99.999% sure she only had one kid.
Today, November 13, 2025, is KEXP’s annual “Music Heals” day honoring the pain of loss and the bittersweet joy of remembering. A few weeks ago, just after Anne’s Celebration of Life, I submitted a request for today for “Transatlanticism” by Death Cab For Cutie along with an accompanying story.
Today, John Richards played it just before 8:00AM. My sister-in-law Rose, who herself is battling cancer, happened to be driving her short commute to work when it came on. She pulled over and recorded it. Just now, I pulled a better quality version from the KEXP streaming archive and made a video (below).
Here’s the full story I submitted:
“I celebrated 20 years of marriage with my wife Anne last June while travelling in Europe. In early August, we attended the Death Cab for Cutie concert at Climate Pledge Arena. Two days later, Anne was struck by a car while crossing the street, suffering severe brain trauma.
Two days after the accident, while at her side in the hospital, I wrote a blog post referencing Transatlanticism by Death Cab for Cutie. It was the first song my daughter requested by name as a 2 year old, except she called it “So Much Closer”. In the hospital, I remarked that the line “I need you so much closer” really hit hard. Anne was in a coma from which she would never emerge. She died 10 days later.
In addition to being a vibrant and loving wife and wonderful mother to our 16 year old daughter Kate, Anne was an incredible educator at Seattle schools, first as a middle school language arts teacher, and then for the past 15 years as the teacher librarian at Bryant Elementary in Northeast Seattle. To say she had impact is an understatement. She instilled a love of reading in hundreds and hundreds of kids, usually with a healthy dose of humor and pizazz. Well over 400 people attended her Celebration of Life at Bryant Elementary in October, including the mayor of Seattle who read a proclamation honoring her. Her sense of humor and giving nature were recurring themes.
I will love Anne always and miss her every single day. I take comfort knowing that part of her lives on inside each person she touched along the way.”
Last Saturday was the Celebration of Life for my wonderful wife Anne who died on August 14. We held it at Bryant Elementary, the school she taught at for 15 years as teacher librarian. The school auditorium/gym was the perfect location. We needed the space since over 400 people attended to celebrate Anne’s life. She touched a lot of hearts and minds. Co-workers, students, family, and friends paid tribute to Anne’s generous heart, can do attitude, and sense of humor (a recurring theme).
A special thanks to all of the Bryant staff and volunteers that helped plan and create the event. Many people contributed their time and made the event truly special. And a big thanks to Lisa Watkins-Scott who officiated the ceremony and to all of the people that shared heartfelt stories about what Anne meant to them. Another big thanks to Lynn, Steve, and Jesse for the wonderful singalong “Annie’s Song”. It was perfect.
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell attended and read a beautiful proclamation officially recognizing October 18, 2025 as Anne Aliverti Day. It will be recorded that way in Seattle’s records. Scroll down for the full text.
A few relevant links:
Kate and I are doing okay but we miss Anne very much. The weight of planning the event has been lifted, but the sadness of losing Anne remains. I’ve read that grief is not linear and comes in waves. I’m feeling that firsthand as it has hit me hard this week many times. I miss my wife and best friend and Kate misses her mom. Time will help most likely, but it’s going to be a slow process.
Thank you all for your support. I wish you all the best. Here are some photos from the day including the program, table displays, the mayor reading his proclamation, the musical performance, and artwork the students created.
Here is the full text of the Mayor’s proclamation:
City of Seattle • Office of the Mayor
PROCLAMATION
WHEREAS, Anne Aliverti dedicated 15 years of service as the beloved librarian at Bryant Elementary School, transforming the school library into a vibrant hub of imagination, learning, and connection for students, families, and educators alike; and
WHEREAS, Anne Aliverti inspired generations of young readers by fostering a deep love of books and storytelling, always greeting students by name, designing creative reading challenges, and ensuring that every child felt seen, valued, and encouraged to explore the world through reading; and
WHEREAS, under Anne Aliverti’s leadership, the Bryant Elementary library became one of the highest-circulating libraries in Seattle Public Schools, reflecting her commitment to literacy access, equity, and the joy of discovery; and
WHEREAS, beyond her role as a librarian, Anne Aliverti was a mentor, collaborator, and community builder – supporting fellow educators, leading professional development, and strengthening connections between families, schools, and the broader Seattle community; and
WHEREAS, Anne Aliverti’s enduring legacy lives on in the countless students whose lives she enriched, the colleagues she inspired, and the community she helped shape through her compassion, creativity, and commitment to learning; and
WHEREAS, the City of Seattle honors Anne Aliverti’s extraordinary contributions as an educator, librarian, and community leader – whose commitment to curiosity, creativity, and student-centered learning exemplifies the power of education – exemplifying our One Seattle vision.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BRUCE A. HARRELL, MAYOR OF SEATTLE, DO HEREBY PROCLAIM OCTOBER 18, 2025 TO BE
Anne Aliverti Day
Mayor Bruce A. Harrell
City of Seattle
We will celebrate Anne’s life on Saturday, October 18 at 1PM
Bryant Elementary
3311 NE 60th St, Seattle, 98115
Event begins at 1:00PM. Doors will be open by 12:30PM, likely earlier. More details:
Parking
Bryant Elementary has no parking lot. There is street parking in the surrounding neighborhoods, but you will have to walk a block or two.
Attire
This is a celebration, not a funeral—so all-black is out unless that’s your usual style. Instead, think dressy casual and/or fall colors.
Cookies Potluck
Families are invited to contribute to a Cookie Potluck following the Celebration of Life. You may drop off 1-2 dozen cookies outside under the covered play area before the event begins.
Literacy donation in Anne’s Honor
PageAhead.org supports children’s literacy. If you feel inclined, you can make a donation in Anne’s honor.
Share a Memory of Anne
An online memory board guest book will be available at the event where you can post a memory or message.
Flowers
Please don’t bring or send flowers. In lieu of that, consider a donation (above).
We will celebrate Anne’s life on Saturday, October 18 at 1PM
Bryant Elementary
3311 NE 60th St, Seattle, 98115
Please join us if you can
Claire Bryan, education reporter for The Seattle Times, wrote a lovely story about Anne. I believe it will appear in Monday’s print edition, but it is up now. Thank you so much, Claire. And thank you to all that participated in the article.
https://www.seattletimes.com/education-lab/seattle-school-librarian-leaves-a-lasting-legacy/
Read more stories about Anne here (in the comments), or share your own. 50 and counting.
SAVE THE DATE:
We will honor Anne’s life on Saturday, October 18th from 1-3PM at Bryant Elementary Auditorium.
Anne passed away on Thursday afternoon Aug 14 2025, 10 days after getting struck by a car in the crosswalk. It’s been the hardest and most painful 10 days for Kate and I, and grieving will continue for us, our family, her colleagues and community. Anne was a bright light with a huge community that loved her. She was an incredible wife and mother to our daughter and I still can’t believe she is gone.
Feel free to continue to leave comments here in the Loving Anne blog, and/or reach out to our family directly. If you haven’t already, Share your Story of Anne (50 and counting).
Please allow time for grieving and making sense of something so senseless and preventable.
Thank you for your support.
A celebration of Anne’s life will be held in on Saturday, October 18th from 1-3PM at Bryant Elementary Auditorium.
Brent
Read also how Anne and I met, got engaged, and married
Edit Aug 21: A coworker snapped a picture outside Bryant Elementary
No significant news about Anne’s condition to report today.
Note: I’m going to ask a friend to take over the blog for a while so I can tend to some other things. It’s possible there may not be a post or status update every day, unless something big happens.
Thank you for all the wonderful stories on the Share your Anne story post. Keep them coming.
Songs played for Anne today included: “Space Age Love Song” by Flock of Seagulls and “Raspberry Beret” – Prince
Overall, not much change from yesterday to today. Anne remains in a coma and we are waiting for her to emerge, in whatever form that takes. She is still intubated and on the ventilator (in a support setting). Technically Anne can breath on her own, but the doctors are unsure whether she can swallow saliva on her own to keep her airway clear.
Songs played for Anne today included “You Make My Dreams (Come True)” by Hall and Oates
and “Sweet Talkin’ Woman” by Electric Light Orchestra.
Anne and I got married on June 25, 2005 at Trilogy, a parklike retirement community east of Redmond. The sun was out, and our friends and family gathered to watch us devote ourselves to each other. Anne’s friend Lisa (Watkins) Scott did a wonderful job officiating our wedding. Erin made a fun illustrated book of our story, one for each guest. Bonnie made our topsy-turvy wedding cake which matched the orange sash of Anne’s wedding dress. And Anne…she was stunning! It was a wonderful ceremony and reception…a real celebration. Songs played that evening included “At Last” by Etta James, “Follow You, Follow Me” by Genesis, and “Magic” by Olivia Newton John.
That night, Anne and I stayed at The Woodmark hotel in Kirkland. The next day, our first full day as a married couple, we called up Trevor and went to see Batman Begins. Anne still has the ticket stub.
Recently, we celebrated our 20th anniversary anniversary while on vacation in Europe. That particular night, we were in Bologna, Italy and went out to celebrate with a special dinner. Kate took our picture (above).
About last night’s status update: I forgot to list songs played for Anne yesterday. They included “More Than a Woman” by The Bee Gees and “Got to Get You Into My Life” by The Beatles.
Some photos from our wedding:
The EEG picked up four focal seizures. These are seizures that are localized to a specific side of the brain. The seizures can be managed a bit with a medication called Keppra, which they have her on. It’s not clear yet what the seizures really mean. I will get more info tomorrow, likely. Other than that, Anne is about the same as yesterday.
Anne’s friends Erin, Bonnie, Ryan and Craig stopped by to see her. My mom and dad were there today too. Anne’s sister Lisa is flying in tomorrow.
Kate and I and all of you
As far as Kate and myself, we are hanging in there. I break down of course, several times a day. We are all devastated. But at the same time, I’m also trying to balance my despair with gratitude. That’s something Anne often talked about….gratitude…especially when things are hard. I don’t know where this will all lead, but I know that I got to spend more than 20 wonderful years with an incredible wife. And Kate got to spend more than 16 years so far with an exceptional mother and role model. Anne is inside me, and inside Kate, and inside all of the people she touched. And that damn well counts for something.
Dear friends of Anne,
Many of you know Anne through her years as a teacher, librarian, or star mentor. Some know her as a neighbor, roommate, or friend. She has touched countless lives. I would love for you to share a memory of Anne. It could be a story of how you met, a moment that stands out, something that made you laugh, or what makes her special to you. No memory is too small or simple.
Please share your story in the comments for this blog post, and include your name so we can know who you are. I will read your comments to Anne.
Thank you for helping us celebrate Anne’s impact on so many lives.
[Note about the blog. When you receive a new post in e-mail, it may not include the related photo. Click the title of the post or the “Read on blog” link to see the post as intended. That is where you can read any comments that are left as well.]
Anne had an MRI overnight. The main things they were looking for were signs of stroke and whether there was trauma around the brain stem (“brain shear”). They did not see either of those things. That said, Anne’s TBI (traumatic brain injury) is Severe.
In Tuesday’s update, I mentioned an “invasive procedure” that Anne had to have. I’ll come clean with what that was. The procedure is called “Bifrontal Decompressive Hemicraniectomy”. To reduce pressure in the brain caused by brain trauma and bruising, a portion of her skull was removed to allow room for the swelling which reduces life-threatening pressure. The skull is retained in a “bone bank” and weeks later when the brain swelling has reduced, the skull can be reattached. The procedure was successful in reducing the pressure to non-critical levels..
Now for some hard truths. While it’s wonderful to have hope that we might one day see and interact with the Anne we knew and loved, AND OH HOW I WOULD LOVE FOR THAT TO BE THE CASE, the more likely possibilities for Severe TBI for someone over 55 are the following: death, persistent vegetative state, moderate-to-severe cognitive, behavioral, and physical disabilities. It’s too soon to have an idea of how things will go.
This is as hard for me to write as it is for you to read, but I want to be as straight with you as I can. Hope and pray as much as you can for Anne. Songs we played for Anne today included “Every Little Thing She Does is Magic” by The Police and “Fearless” by Pink Floyd. Tomorrow morning’s post will be a participation question, so get ready.
In the fall of 2004, Anne and I had been dating steadily for two years. Anne’s friend Bonnie, then a sought-after wedding cake creator, asked Anne early in the week if she would want to deliver a wedding cake to Port Townsend on Saturday. Anne said sure and asked me if I wanted to come. After delivering the cake, we could spend the day in Port Townsend before returning home.
This was my chance, I thought. I had been wanting to propose to Anne and was trying to decide just how and where I would do it. I decided to make a tiny story book called “Anne’s Favorite Day” that would end in the suggestion of a proposal, after which I would pop the question. I began work on the book. I had a small plastic case lying around that I wanted the book to fit in, so I measured the space and began writing and designing the book, assembling lots of fun pictures that I thought Anne would like. With the book completed, I purchased a box of Crunch ‘n Munch, ate a little, and then tucked the book just under the surface. I stowed the box in the back of my car.
The trip up to Port Townsend was nice, and the wedding cake delivery went smoothly. Afterward, we walked around Port Townsend a little, and then drove over to nearby Fort Worden park to walk on the beach. Just after parking and starting to walk, I said, “I’ve got some Crunch ‘n Munch” in the back…I’ll go get it.” With the box now in hand, we started walking the beach. I reached in and took a little, making sure I could easily feel the hidden prize.
“Want some?” I said.
She took the box and dipped her hand in. “What’s this?”, she said, pulling it out.
“I guess it’s the prize inside”, I returned.
“Crunch ‘n Munch doesn’t have prizes.” she said knowingly, turning it over to see that it read “Anne’s Favorite Day, a Story by Brent”.
“Why don’t you read it?”, I said. She removed the diminutive book from it’s case and read the story. At the end of the story, she looked at me and I told her how wonderful she is and asked her if she would marry me. She immediately said yes. It was the best decision I ever made!
Anne remains unconscious. She has been off sedation for two days. If you are wondering if that means she is in a coma, the answer is yes. A coma is a deep state of prolonged unconsciousness. GCS (Glasgow Coma Scale) is used to measure the depth of coma with 3 or 3T being the lowest and 15 being the highest (a fully awake, alert, conversant person). The total score is a combination of three component test scores: eye (1-4), verbal (1-5), and motor (1-6). Anne is 3T currently. The T means she is intubated and not capable of making verbal responses. In short, Anne has a long journey ahead. The doctors ordered an MRI which should hopefully be performed tonight and evaluated tomorrow. It will give a more detailed picture of what is happening in her brain than the CT scans.
Today we played Anne several more songs including “Inside Out” by Spoon and “Strawberry Letter 23” by The Brothers Johnson. I read Anne some more of your lovely cards.
The time is October 2002. I decided to give the world of online dating a try…in this case Match.com. Browsing through the Match profiles, I came across one that had no photos at all, but was uncommonly well written and quite funny. One part of it read, “I like cat juggling, gasoline fights, and I can milk anything with nipples.” The first two parts I was pretty sure were movie references to The Jerk and Zoolander but I didn’t recognize the third. I wrote her (“SeaTowner”) a message saying that I thought her profile was pretty funny and that I recognized The Jerk and Zoolander, but what was the third reference from? She wrote me back saying it was from “Meet the Parents” (which I had not yet seen for some reason). She said her 30-day free trial for Match.com was about over and she wasn’t going to pay to renew as the only other guy she had met was way too into ferns. She gave me her e-mail in case I wanted to keep chatting.
E-mails led to phone calls which led to setting up a date for drinks at Mapleleaf Grill, a bar and eatery just up the street from my (old) house. I arrived first and a few minutes later, Anne breezed in the door. We had a great time talking and ended up having dinner as well. We talked a lot about movies that we had or hadn’t seen. I asked her if she had seen Dick? She scoffed a little. She had heard of it but had assumed from the title that it was just some stupid low-brow movie. I told her I thought it was a pretty smart comedy about two ditzy girls involved with Nixon and Watergate and that it was hilarious, and given what I had learned so far about her movie tastes, I thought she would probably like it. I told her that I had a big screen TV and Dick on DVD and we could watch it after dinner if she wanted to keep the date going. She agreed and followed me back down the street to my house. We made some popcorn and watched Dick together and she agreed it was hilarious. She drove home after the movie, and I left a message on her machine for her to hear when she got home, saying what a great time I had with her.
When recounting how we met, we will sometimes tell people that I showed her Dick on our first date. Anne likes many kinds of humor including the sophomoric kind.
Anne was stable today. They did remove the ICP in her head, so that’s nice. Other than that, not a lot of change from yesterday. We are still waiting for her to wake up…it might be tomorrow, or it could be a while. We played many songs for her including “Here Comes My Girl” by Tom Petty and “Can’t You See” by Marshall Tucker Band. We put up some photos from our recent trip to Switzerland that her coworker printed out (thank you!)
I did get more news about the accident. The driver that struck Anne was a woman in her late 70s that lives in the general neighborhood. There were also two witnesses, and a third woman that arrived soon after the accident who I was able to speak with and get some additional information. I hope to have the police report next week, but we will see.
A request We really appreciate the cards that people have brought but I would request no more live plants please. As much as we appreciate them and the sentiment behind it, it increases the things we have to keep track of and care for, and we already have a pretty daunting To-Do list. Cards are great and very much appreciated and I will read them all to Anne.
Many people have asked if they can make us meals. We are still figuring things out right now, and are trying to figure out what would work best so I would say, hold that thought, and we will reach out when the time is right.
Thank you for understanding and for all of your love and support. Anne was (and is!) always a champion of gratitude and we learn from the best.
On Tuesday night, several of Anne’s co-workers at Bryant Elementary gathered in Anne’s library, the heart of the school, to write cards, send healing thoughts, and share what they love about Anne. I will be reading your cards and comments to Anne…more than once. My stretch goal is to get through each one without breaking down. It’s a process.
Thank you Bryant staff, her extended library team, educators, and everyone else that is pulling for Anne.
Today brought a bit of good news. The results of the CT scan they did overnight were better than the doctor expected. I’ll take whatever small piece of good news I can get at this point!
The pressure in Anne’s brain has been consistently good since the skull surgery…to the point that they think they can remove the ICP monitor. That might happen tomorrow. Anne’s eyes are responding well to light tests and her limbs are responding to reflex tests. They have discontinued sedatives though there is still quite a bit in her system. It’s possible that she may wake up in the next day or two. It’s hard to predict timing on anything or what “waking up” will look like.
Overall, a better day than yesterday. The doctors, nurses, and staff at Harborview have been fantastic. I started this blog just this morning over a cup of coffee. Thanks to all who have read, subscribed, or commented. Please feel free to share it with anyone you think should know. Anne has a vast circle of friends and coworkers and I still haven’t been able to get to all of them. As much as I would have liked to personally contact everyone…I’m dealing with a lot right now.
Kate is doing okay and we are holding it together, making lots of lists, hugging a lot. Thank you all.
Loving Anne 