SEATTLE NEWS ARCHIVES & FEATURES

Bette Midler calls dying fan to sing her ‘Wind Beneath My Wings’

Jun 28, 2013, 2:04 PM | Updated: Jun 29, 2013, 11:49 am

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Warning: It’s hard to hold back tears while watching this.

Bette Middler was tired and hoarse from a show last month, but she made time to call a fan in her last hours of life.

Anna Greenberg, 28, was in the hospital with a rare form of cancer called rhabdomyosarcoma. She was a huge fan of Broadway star Bette Midler, so when she took a turn for the worse, her family contacted the singer.

They had met briefly at an event, and Bette remembered her.

“Hi, Anna, how are you? Joe told me that things were going up and down, a little bit up and down,” said Bette. “You are such a wonderful soul, and I’m so glad I had a chance to meet you and look you in the eye and tell you how much your support meant to me.”

Her respirator creaks in the background, and you can hear the emotion in the room as her family is holding back tears. Anna says she’s “pushing through” the morphine.

It was her last wish to hear Bette Midler sing. Anna asked for ‘Wind Beneath My Wings.’

“I love you,” says Bette before hanging up. “My angel, big kiss.”

Just a few hours later, Anna died. But she was able to fulfill her dream of having Bette sing to her.

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Bette Midler calls dying fan to sing her ‘Wind Beneath My Wings’