Livin' for Livi honors crash victim with acts of kindness

STRUTHERS

Jolie Tatar was driving home from her stepdaughter’s color-guard competition, thinking about what she would cook for dinner.

Then her life changed forever.

“Two minutes later, I was standing over my daughter’s dead body on the side of the road,” Tatar said. “Basically, your heart and soul are gone.”

Police say a drunken driver collided with the family’s car on an interstate in Summerville, S.C., on March 26.

Tatar and her stepson, Jacob, survived, but Tatar’s daughter, Alivia “Livi” Watson, did not. Her stepdaughter was not in the vehicle.

The accident happened less than a month before Alivia’s 10th birthday.

In the months since, Tatar has tried her best to keep busy. She says it baffles her when people tell her how strong she is.

“I don’t feel strong,” Tatar said. “I lost my whole life. What are my options? To not live or to go on for her. You have to learn to live. I’m not me anymore. A huge part of me is gone, and she took it with her.”

Tatar is now a member of Mothers Against Drunk Driving. To feel closer to Alivia, she has dyed her hair purple, Alivia’s favorite color, and she wears her daughter’s ashes in a necklace.

She’s also started a Facebook group, called “Livin’ for Livi.” The group encourages people to carry out small acts of kindness in Alivia’s name and then to share those stories online.

Read more about it in Wednesday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.