GoFundMe launched to cover funeral expenses for Centre County woman killed in crash
Anjelica Miele and Anna Case were less than two miles away Tuesday from their Mingoville home, ready to continue binge-watching Disney movies that were part of their childhoods.
Case and her wife watched “Tarzan” that morning — it was Miele’s favorite movie — and were listening to “You’ll Be in My Heart,” one of the 14 songs from the soundtrack for the 1999 animated film, as they traveled along state Route 64.
That’s when an 85-year-old Bellefonte man driving a 2017 Honda all-terrain vehicle crossed from a side road into their path and collided with their 2016 Jeep Grand Cherokee, according to state police at Rockview.
Miele swerved in an attempt to avoid the ATV and struck a ditch on the southern side of the road. Her SUV overturned multiple times in a field.
Miele, 28, was killed. Case, 26, was treated for minor injuries and was left without her “ride or die.” Someone she described as the most selfless, kindhearted and loving person she knew.
“She was my protector,” Case said Thursday. “She treated me like a queen and I mean that in every way. ... She really just gave me that sense of security back. She made me feel safe and would always ask me, ‘Do you feel safe? Do you feel loved?’ There was always a comfort just having her in the same room.”
Case was born in Indiana, brought into a military family that traveled frequently. She moved to Pennsylvania as an adult and met Miele while both worked for Taco Bell.
Miele, Case said, remembered every detail of the interaction. Case had her hair wrapped in side buns like the iconic Princess Leia. That caught of the eye of Miele, a self-described “Star Wars” buff.
The relationship blossomed from there. The pair eloped in February 2020 with a tie-dye theme. They hoped to have children, but those plans were washed away in an instant.
“We were good. We make a great team,” Case said. “... Unfortunately, now I will never get that opportunity.”
A GoFundMe page was created for Miele’s funeral expenses. More than five dozen people donated more than $7,000 as of Thursday night.
Case expressed little animosity toward the man that struck their vehicle. She hoped for an opportunity to “tell him it’s OK” and to enjoy every moment he has with his family.
When asked what she’d do if she had another opportunity to speak with her wife that always wore a red, plaid hat, Case started her reply by saying, “That’s a tough one.”
It wasn’t words, necessarily, that Case longed for. It was something finite. It was a desire to spend more time with the person she loves.
“I feel like there’s just so much unsaid. And I don’t really know that I would say much,” Case said. “I think I would just jump in her arms and hold her. And I think that honestly that would be enough for me.”
