Anna Christie Sweezey was born on January 17th, 1981. She passed away unexpectedly on January 17th, 2022. Anna was born to David Sweezey and Christie Leber in Anchorage, Alaska. She attended Spring Hill Elementary there before moving to Vashon Island, Washington in 1994 where she attended middle school and graduated from Vashon High School in 1999. Anna worked for many years at Café Luna and Snapdragon on Vashon before moving to the credit union. The image of Anna, a statuesque vision of swirling color and energy sitting beside her ancient dachshund Dubi, will forever be etched in the mind of many islanders.
After a recent stint in Brookings, OR she returned to the island and had just begun working at Fair Isle Vet Clinic when she passed. Anna loved the outdoors and was never more content than she was sitting with her dog on a beach. She camped and hiked as much of the west coast as she could, exploring forests and discovering beautiful hidden beaches. Although she loved to see the beauty of the mountains and the desert, she never stayed long in a place that isn’t touched by saltwater. While Anna worked most of her life in customer service she preferred a dog to any human being; her love of animals was unconditional and absolute. She would (loudly) tell you why you shouldn’t eat meat, why you should buy cruelty-free, and why dogs are better than children. Anna volunteered for animal charities and the Humane Society in Brookings where she was reprimanded for taking a dog out for ice cream.
Anna had a huge, empathetic heart and a beautiful soul. She is preceded in death by her sister Jessie Linnell and survived by her father David Sweezey, her mother Christie Leber, her sister Laura Hale, nephews Alex and Ryan Laskey, aunts, uncles, cousins, and countless friends. In lieu of flowers please send donations in Anna’s name to Farm Haven Rescue in Sedro Woolley and the Northwest Dog Project (northwestdogproject.org) whose mission is to care for older, medically challenged and neglected dogs. Anna would also ask that you start buying cruelty-free.
