Both AnnaLeah and Mary would have reached some milestones in 2020. AnnaLeah would have celebrated having lived a quarter of a century on May 15 — had her life not ended in a truck underride crash on May 4, 2013, at the age of 17.
Mary would be turning 21 on August 6 — had her life not ended on May 8, 2013, due to a truck underride crash at the age of 13.
Their coming of age stories will never be written.
My favorite place in the world, Woods on the Lake, a 14-acre property on Lake Michigan with 7 cottages, is up for sale. It would be a dream come true for Jerry and me to acquire, and make more accessible, this outdoor space which has provided recreation, rest, and renewal for so many families.
Would you like to help us realize this dream? In the event that we are unable to purchase Woods on the Lake, all donations will go to Pioneer County Park, where I camped as a child and which borders the property on the north, for ongoing accessibility projects In Memory of AnnaLeah & Mary .
You can make a donation at our GoFundMe page.
Virtual Tour of Woods on the Lake
Though it may seem questionable to take on such an endeavor during a pandemic, we look forward to a time in the future when many can enjoy this facility and would plan to use these unusual circumstances to update and expand an already wonderful West Michigan resource.
In 2010, we discovered that Jerry, along with some of our nine children, has a progressive hereditary condition, Charcot Marie Tooth , which makes it harder to do things like climb stairs or walk very far without getting fatigued. So, whereas when the kids were little the steps to the beach weren’t a big deal, we now look for vacation rentals which are more accessible. That’s not always easy to find.
Because of that, Jerry and I have tons of ideas about how we could make this home-away-from-home even better by making it accessible to families and individuals with disabilities — a wheelchair accessible ramp down the dune to the lakeshore, a mat on the beachfront for wheelchairs , wheelchair swing , wheelchairs which can go into the water, and so on. We envision a wheelchair-accessible trail through the woods to connect with Pioneer County Park , which borders this amazing property to the north. How about a frisbee disc golf course along the trail? Or how about a taxi bike ?
This particular vacation spot is full of wonderful memories, and will always hold a special place in our hearts. Our daughters, AnnaLeah & Mary, along with their brothers & sisters, enjoyed building sandcastles and splashing in the waves, roasting marshmallows around a campfire, and taking walks along the shore.
It was to Woods on the Lake that our family came to stay from our home in North Carolina when we had to make the heart-wrenching journey back to Michigan to bury the girls after a truck underride crash on May 4, 2013, took them from us. And that is why we’d also like to build a lodge to host retreats and workshops for families who face the challenges of disabilities or loss.
Contact us for more information: marianne@annaleahmary.com
In order to encourage trucking companies to buy and drive safer trucks, AnnaLeah & Mary for Truck Safety has created decals to affix to trucks which have installed a stronger rear guard and/or added side guards — thereby meeting safety standards for rear and side underride protection, as spelled out in the STOP Underrides Bill.
In hopes that this recognition of fleet safety leadership will help to prevent the loss of other precious lives, we launched this program on May 4, 2020 –remembering our loss of AnnaLeah and Mary in an underride crash seven years earlier on May 4, 2013.
You can endorse this underride safety initiative by signing a Letter of Support here:
In order to encourage trucking companies to buy and drive safer trucks, AnnaLeah & Mary for Truck Safety has created decals to affix to trucks which have installed a stronger rear guard and/or added side guards — thereby meeting safety standards for rear and side underride protection, as spelled out in the STOP Underrides Bill.
In hopes that this recognition of fleet safety leadership will help to prevent the loss of other precious lives, we are launching this program on May 4, 2020, as we remember our loss of AnnaLeah and Mary in an underride crash seven years ago on May 4, 2013.
The SaferTruck System Bono Award is for trucks on which a stronger rear underride guard has been installed to prevent underride deaths at the rear of trucks. We chose this name in reference to the patron saint, Beuno or Bono (Latin, bonus = good), known for the protection of children — using the image of Mary’s beloved stuffed toy St. Bernard, Gertie.
The SaferTruck System Christopher Award is for trucks which have had side guards installed to prevent underride deaths at the sides. We chose this name in reference to the patron saint/advocate of travelers, Christopher — keeping in mind AnnaLeah’s love of medieval history and dragons.
With special thanks to Mary & AnnaLeah’s brother, Isaac Karth, who created the designs for these two SaferTruck System awards.
Safer Trucks Receive Commemorative Awards for Contribution to Safer Roads flipbook
SaferTruck System Awards Program brochure
Sign a Letter of Support for the SaferTruck System Awards Program
Raleigh News&Observer reporter Richard Stradling attended our workshop on underride, Turning Tragedy Into Advocacy: Two moms on a mission to make truck crashes more survivable, at the North Carolina Vision Zero Traffic Safety Conference on August 6, 2019. It inspired him to investigate the underride issue and this week he published the result of his in-depth research:
I appreciate the time he took to present the viewpoints of multiple stakeholders and then go a step further. He provided a platform for counterargument, allowing us to question or challenge potentially misleading information so that the reader could be more fully informed and not left with the wrong impression.
After seeing the latest segment of the WUSA9 Underride Investigative Series by Eric Flack, Teresa Woodard at WFAA in Dallas interviewed Rebekah Karth Chojnacki on January 22, 2020. Here’s the result of that interview:
Well said!
WUSA9 Underride Investigative Series, January 21, 2020 segment, Truckers say they’re open to strengthening underride standards – with a catch:
True Stories Well Told recently published this all too true tale of AnnaLeah. . .
AnnaLeah was a particularly avid reader with a colorful imagination. She had a myriad ideas written down on random pieces of paper tucked into drawers, filling notebooks, or emailed to herself. She had, in fact, already created in her own mind numerous literary worlds peopled by characters with names and personalities. . .
Read more here: https://truestorieswelltold.com/2019/12/18/annaleahs-too-true-story/
I’m very thankful to the people who gave AnnaLeah the opportunity, as a teenager, to care for young children at a weekly Women’s Bible Study as well as at a preschool. She was so good with little ones — able to relate to them and captivate their hearts. At the same time, she was a deep thinker and well-read.
At the time, I might have said, “What good experience you’re getting to develop your skills for the future.” In retrospect, it turns out that there was no future for her in which she actually made good use of those skills. In my darker moments, I might even think, “Well, what was the point of all that then?”
All the same, I am glad for AnnaLeah that while she was here, she gave fully of herself. She laughed. She thought great thoughts and wrote inspiring words. She enjoyed her life and through it touched other people, who loved and appreciated her.
AnnaLeah’s time on earth did not prepare her for a life which unfolded into old age. No matter. AnnaLeah’s simple acts of kindness, her winsome ways with little children, her natural gift of storytelling and her ability to draw you into her laughter, along with her pondering of wondrous things. . . these were not meant for the future. They made for richness in the daily moments of her life and now bring to mind treasured memories of the past.
Her greatest adventure is what lies ahead. . . in an infinity of days with her heavenly Father — joy unspeakable. Still, I’m only being honest when I say how unfathomable it is that her life here on earth is over — just like that — and how much I wish it wasn’t so.
AnnaLeah. Forever 17. Never Forgotten.
Good news: Nothing to fear!: Christmas Letters From AnnaLeah & Mary
We are thankful to Cool Breeze Studio for creating this recently-released underride documentary — telling the stories of underride victims to shed light on this preventable problem.
Of special interest to those concerned about truck underride is information which I discovered on March 2, 2016. It refers to a published statement by a U.S. DOT agency on March 19, 1969.
That information stuck in my mind more than it would for most people because March 19 is my anniversary and today I celebrated 42 years of marriage to my loving husband, Jerry. Only at the time, I was 13 — not even driving yet.
On that day, 50 years ago, the DOT said that they intended to extend underride protection to the sides of large vehicles. Why would they do that? Because underride is a potential risk all around the truck (except at the tires). They had mandated a weak (we found out thanks to IIHS) rear underride guard but not side.
Imagine. They still have not done so! Many years have come and gone. I have raised a family of nine and buried two of them due to truck underride. And, yet, this country has dragged its feet and neglected to make it a priority to solve the underride problem — despite the fact that technology has advanced by leaps and bounds in other areas.
From that March 2, 2016 post: A Public Comment on Underride Rulemaking re: original intent of NHTSA in 1969
I just read an interesting Public Comment on the Underride Rulemaking: Comment from 7-E Seven Hills Engineering, LLC – Transport Canada
Perry Ponder also commented on the Single Unit Truck Underride Rulemaking last fall: Comment from 7-E Seven Hills Engineering, LLC – Transport Canada
Of special interest to me was the information in both of his Comments on 1969 rulemaking:
“I will begin by pointing out that continuing to allow truck and trailer induced PCI to occur at otherwise survivable crash speeds (delta-V’s of 45mph and beyond) discards years of crashworthiness efforts and wastes the safety benefits we have come to expect and pay for in our cars.
From an engineering perspective the need for vehicle crash compatibility in the form of adequate heavy truck underride guarding is apparent in order to protect against the hazard of PCI which exposes the vulnerable head and neck region to severe, potentially fatal or crippling injury.
This hazard – easily remedied by readily available materials and simple structural analysis – is present also on the sides of heavy trailers and trucks. The FMVSS standard should be broadened to include guarding for the sides and rear of heavy straight trucks, as well as the sides of heavy trailers. This was the original intent of NHTSA rulemakers in the 1969 NPRM, Docket No. 1-11; Notice 2.”
Note: Perry Ponder later that year came to the First Underride Roundtable and through connections made there completed development of his AngelWing side guard — successfully tested on March 30, 2017 at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrL7AUMT4To
The AngelWing, along with the Safety Skirt, will be tested at the D.C. Underride Crash Test Event on March 26 — as well as a crash into the side of a trailer with no side underride protection.
Other March underride posts:
March has indeed been an eventful month for truck underride. And next week at this time, we will have hosted the first ever D.C. Underride Crash Test Event. 
