The harrowing medical journey of Aaron Rosewater, beloved co-owner of the Levin & Company bookstore on the Healdsburg plaza, came to a heartbreaking end last week. Aaron died in the hospital Friday, according to loved ones. His wife Gwen, who shared updates throughout the ordeal via a GoFundMe page the community set up to support their family, wrote: “We had to let my darling Aaron go today. We were all out of options — it was the only thing we could do. My heart is just destroyed by this. My daily prayer for decades has been that God take me first. He truly was my better half, and I don’t know how I am going to limp through the rest of myself without him.”
According to previous updates, Aaron was first hospitalized with “a severe case of Influenza A” that “quickly turned into a devastating medical crisis” — one that left him in critical condition for over two months, “enduring countless complications and setbacks.”
After his final breath Friday, Gwen wrote: “At least the torment is over for him and for myself. It has been two months of agony.” She also shared a glimpse into Aaron’s final conscious moments on this Earth: “We told him he was the best husband the world had ever seen, and the best father, and that hundreds and hundreds of people adored him. He had not smiled in days, but he smiled beatifically at all of us and lifted his lips to kiss me, something he had not done since this started. He radiated peace and love and gentle joy, and absolutely acceptance of everything just as it was.”
A few days later, Adele Levin — Aaron’s mom and business partner, who opened Levin & Company more than three decades ago — wrote on Facebook that her family has no plans to shutter the shop. “Our bookstore will continue to serve this community,” she wrote. “Our Aaron is gone and we will all miss him terribly but Aaron’s Mom, Adele, Gwen and Aaron’s son, Emile, will continue to run the bookstore as efficiently as before. But we admit it will be a hard act to follow because Aaron did it so well and with such ease. We will just have to up our game and work a little harder.” Here’s some more backstory on the Levin legacy, from Adele’s post:
“For those of you who do not know the bookstore’s history, Levin & Company started as a small used bookstore on Center St across from the Police Station in downtown Healdsburg but soon started expanding and started carrying new books. People encouraged us to do so. An opportunity to move onto the plaza in 1995 became possible with the help of a local customer who provided a loan to expand our inventory. … Thanks to a loyal local customer base and a good location for attracting tourists Levin & Company has now been in business for 33 years and is doing very well. Once again, the Levin & Company family wants to thank the community for helping us through the present crisis, the loss of our dear Aaron.”
In the end, our community raised over $85,000 to help pay Aaron’s medical bills and support his family and business during this ordeal. And if anyone has any extra to pitch in, I’m sure it would be appreciated.
