Letter to the editor: Remembering Anna Alber

March 6, 2026

By now, you’ve seen Anna Alber – Mrs. Alber’s obituary. I met her in her late sixties, and my family purchased the fifth-generation apple orchard and cider mill from her children in 2000 – a divide that never really closes. As such, I don’t know her as well as many of you —but I did appreciate Mrs. Alber’s life.

I visited her twice while she was in hospice and only once was she awake and coherent. I told her I’d be back, but I never had the chance. She passed away quietly at an evangelical home in Saline earlier this year.

On my last visit, although briefly, of course we talked about the Orchard.

The night prior a dusting of snow fell. Probably not even an inch — maybe just enough to stick. The snow fell during an evening with a little breeze. Had it been a summer night, it would have been the calm cool breeze you tell your friends about. It was consistent, and quiet — unlike other winter nights at the Orchard where the wind rips and swirls in no particular direction swaying and creaking the old farm house in which Mrs. Alber lived in most of her life. Its whiteness brought a reminder of purity — a clean canvas for the world again.

And because of this consistent breeze, the apple trees blocked some of the falling snow and a sliver of snowless ground around the trees created the distinct impression of a shadow. Slightly offset, it looked like a circular wooden block on which you set a trophy.

I’m sure we talked about Michigan State basketball, the care she was receiving, and more — but I don’t remember many specifics from my last visit with Mrs. Alber besides her reaction when I told her about the shadow around the trees. She slid up in her chair and smiled contently. It’s the type of reaction where you understand what a person is trying to say without them saying it — and no words will aid in your understanding of the topic at hand — but there’s a sense of comfort in knowing someone is trying to speak aloud something you know too well, something you feel.

Mrs. Alber understood we are just stewards on this earth — passing by and doing our best to take care of what we leave behind — the land and its people in our communities.

Throughout my life, she and her husband, Al (Nathan) Alber, answered every question my family had about growing apples and making cider with grace, dignity, and humility. If I could, I would tell her how thankful I am to have had her in my life. I know the best expression of gratitude is doing what her family has done for so many years — taking care of the land and its people in our community.

Nathan Bossory
Alber Orchard & Cider Mill
Freedom Township

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by Sara Swanson

Sara Swanson is an editor, writer and a founder of the Manchester Mirror.