Anita Sharma

Memorial service planned for woman struck by pickup on Friday

By Rikki King

Herald Writer

EVERETT -- Anita Sharma loved roller coasters and made a mean Indian radish salad.

Sharma, 31, of Mill Creek, had only a few cousins in the U.S., and they cherished her for her bravery and her dedication to keeping them all together.

She was closest to Sapna Bhatt, 30, who lives in New York City. Bhatt remembers rushing to copy her cousin after Sharma got highlights in her hair in the early '90s.

"She was very adventurous," Bhatt said Monday. "She was very, very brave."

Anita Sharma died Friday night outside O'Finnigan's Pub on the 13600 block of Highway 99 in Everett. A 2008 Toyota Tacoma pickup drifted onto the sidewalk, striking her, according to the Washington State Patrol.

Sharma was waiting for a taxi at the time of the crash, pub co-owner Tim Phillips said Monday.

Police arrested an Everett man, 42, for investigation of vehicular homicide. The man told a state trooper that he thought he fell asleep at the wheel and had consumed up to four mixed drinks earlier in the evening, according to police reports.

No charges have been filed.

Phillips is planning a memorial service for Sharma at the bar, where she was a regular.

Sharma was always with a big group of friends, Phillips said, just as Bhatt remembers.

The two cousins had only met in person a few times, after years of exchanging letters, e-mails and phone calls. Most of their family lives in India, so Sharma always stressed the importance of sticking together.

Bhatt's brother, Suraj Bhatt, said the last few days have been rough, but he feels incredibly lucky to have recent memories of Sharma. She spent three weeks visiting family in Pittsburgh earlier this summer.

"She was having so much fun," he said. "She just wanted to ride roller coaster after roller coaster, which we definitely did."

They rode the scariest roller coaster Sharma could find in Pittsburgh.

"I was screaming because I was terrified, but she was just laughing and screaming like a little girl," Sapna Bhatt said.

The cousins were seeking direction in life and deciding what they wanted to do as adults. They were all looking forward to the series of weddings they knew was coming, as they all were about the right age to be married.

Instead, the family is planning a funeral later this week.

"She had that all taken away from her," Sapna Bhatt said.

Eric Stevick contributed to this story. Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.