By Evan Johnson
For 17 years, visitors picking up a morning coffee on the way to the mountain or a sandwich for the long drive home could count on a friendly face at the Killington Market. According to her friends and co-workers, Ann Seibert was reliable, friendly and hardworking. In 2011, when Tropical Storm Irene devastated portions of the state, she was one of the first people to find a way from Pittsfield to Killington, driving over a washed-out culvert to make it to work. She loved golf and skiing, cribbage, the Denver Broncos and an occasional Gran Marnier.
Seibert died at home on Feb. 10. She was 61.
Seibert was born in Defiance, Ohio, and she graduated from St. Wendelin School in Fostoria, Ohio, in 1973. She graduated from Rhode Island College in 1980. She moved to Colorado in 1984 and worked as a psychiatric nurse until 1986. She returned to Ohio briefly before moving to Vermont in 1987. A passionate photographer, she worked as a photographer for Reflections of Killington. It was during this time that she met her husband, Jim Creed. They were engaged to be married until he was killed in a car accident in 1993.
When Reflections closed, she began working at the Killington Market, where she did everything from making sandwiches to working in the front of the store. She came to know many regular customers on a first-name basis.
“She would help anywhere she needed to help,” Killington Market owner Steve Durkee said. “She enjoyed the store, the customers and we enjoyed her.”
When she wasn’t at work, her other two great passions were the Denver Broncos and her golf game. She golfed regularly at the White River Golf Course and eventually came to work there part-time.
On Monday, Durkee said he and the rest of the staff at the Killington Market were still processing the news.
“She was a key part of our team at the market and a very good friend,” he said. “She is very, very badly missed by all of us.”
She was pre-deceased by her father Roger and mother Joanne. She is survived by her family: Daniel Seibert of Fostoria, Ohio; William Seibert of Middlebury, Vt.; David Seibert of South Lyon, Mich.; Catherine Seibert of Belle Center, Ohio; Richard Seibert of LaGrange, Ind.; Jean Seibert also of Belle Center; and Timothy Seibert of Livonia, Mich. She is also survived by two nieces and eleven nephews, eight grand-nieces and seven grand-nephews, two great grand-nieces and one great grand-nephew.
There will be a Catholic Mass held for Seibert at St Mary’s parish in Middlebury on March 4 at 10 a.m. There will be a celebration of her life at the White River Golf Course in Rochester, Vt. 1-4 p.m. Charitable donations can be made to The American Heart Association, the Killington Fire and Rescue squad or local food shelf.
