Anne Tonti-Filippini

BIRD WHISPERER

Growing up with Anne, she knew every magpie in the area. She named each bird and could recognise each one from a distance. She could describe their personality traits, their relationships, and their social status within the colony. Many birds would eat from her hand (but not from other human hands), some would even walk right into the house to look for the bird lady. They trusted her.

Each breeding season, the nesting magpies would terrorise every human in the neighbourhood, yet they didn't swoop Anne.

One time, a gust of wind blew a nest down from the tree next door, complete with the hatchlings. Mum told dad to put the nest back up in the tree. He tried to but was attacked by the parents. They pecked and scratched so much that dad had to abort the mission in a bleeding mess, even after donning gloves, a hat and eye protection.

So Anne gave it a try. The magpie parents screamed at her, but they didn't touch her. Anne climbed the tree, put the nest back in its proper place and, knowing her, probably gave the inexperienced parents a stern lecture in sound nest engineering. Anne was the magpie whisperer.

A SPECIAL VISIT

Yesterday we said farewell to Anne at Fremantle Cemetery, in the East Chapel, with the sounds of her beloved magpies in the background.

This morning, two families of magpies walked right up to our front door and waited calmly for us to come and feed them, just like the magpies used to do at Anne's house in Daglish. They behaved as if this were a completely normal occurrence, yet we've never seen these birds before and didn't even know there was a colony in the area!

The scientist in me says this is just a coincidence. The human in me knows that Anne had something to do with it ;-)

It was a privilege to meet Anne in the last part of her life. She was a unique and incredibly stoic person with a fine mind, a good heart and many interests.
It was only reading this page that alerted me to the fact she was involved in the Save Giblett Forest campaign, which I was as well, and now I'm very sorry that we didn't get to talk about it together. I really admired her capacity to continue to navigate her own independent way through life despite the challenges she faced. Most people would not have been up to that task, but she did it incredibly well. Vale Anne.

It was a privilege to have worked with Anne at Fremantle Hospital for many years. I'll always remember Anne's twinkling blue eyes, her love for chocolate and her wicked sense of humour. Thank you for your kindness and compassion.

On behalf of the entire Freo Pharmily, we would like to send our sincerest condolences to Anne's family.

May Anne Rest in Peace.

I only had the privilege of getting to know Anne over the past few years, although I strongly suspect our paths had crossed many years ago at Freo Hospital. She was a truly remarkable woman, and reading her life story has shown me how even more amazing she was. Thankyou for sharing this.
It really was an honour to know her, and she will be missed.

I worked with Anne for almost 20 years at Fremantle hospital. She was always there, behind the scenes. Part of the heartbeat of the pharmacy department at Fremantle hospital. When she retired, it was like a sense of belonging had been lost.

Anne was a perfectionist and always took pride in her work. Also highly intelligent, she had a wealth of knowledge about anything and everything. There were many occasions after work we would chat, without realising how much time had passed…she was very chatty…from politics, foreign policy. the latest happenings at work, pharmacy knowledge, family, to chocolate! Her eyes would light up with warmth and pride when she spoke of her children and grandchildren.

Anne was a sucker for the underdog. She was always there to help, provide advice and guidance, particularly the new or junior pharmacists. A good teacher who explained things so well. She was so humble, you felt at ease even if you asked the dumbest of questions. She helped me on many occasions.

And then there was her sharp witted humour… her blue eyes would get that cheeky twinkle!

I saw Anne in her last few days. She was at peace despite the pain she was suffering. Her eyes still twinkling.

What a remarkable, multi-talented lady she was!

I was incredibly fortunate to be Anne's neighbour for three years and have the great gift of her friendship during that time.
I will forever remember Anne for her gentle smile, often accompanied with a cheeky glint in her eyes.
Anne first introduced herself to us when she was greeted by Sam and Owen's face bobbing over the face from the trampoline. They came inside and told me there was a really nice lady next door.
Although Anne was intensely private, I was blessed to be counted as someone she trusted and cherished our time as friends.
Thank you Anne, love you.
Kelly

We all know that Nana loved chocolate. When she was in the hospital I asked her “What’s your favourite food?” and she was like “Terry’s”. Whenever it was mentioned her face would light up even if she couldn’t word how much she loved it. Whenever it was Christmas time she would bring a chocolate orange, it was like THE Christmas food.
Not only was she known for her love for chocolate, she loved chemistry. In the final days that we were seeing her, I asked her about chemistry. Even if she couldn’t talk much to tell her experiences, she could just sit there and listen to you talk about chemistry and she would be way happier.
Hopefully up in heaven, she has unlimited chocolate oranges and also a lab for herself so she can keep continuing her passion.
Thanks Nana for everything, the impact you made on people’s lives is unforgettable and you will be missed.

It's been an incredibly difficult thing, this... to write a tribute to Anna AKA AnTi AKA mum. Turns out she was a mum to many with her sagely advice and was the bane of many a doctors existence with her attention to detail and immovable stance when she believed she was 100% right.

If life is an MMORPG, Anne was a cleric or depending on your game, a paladin. The type who could wear various armour and play the role of warrior or healer. She was an older player so also knew all the lore and would school new players with either gentle guidance or a swift rebuke. She stayed true to her calling from beginning to end and was a dependable party member, always keeping line of sight and never running out of mana. Her tradeskill was clearly alchemy and she had maximum first aid.

Her weapon of choice was a mace, blunt as she could be sometimes, and her off hand was either The Good Book, a rosary or some kind of noxious phial. She didn't use healing potions on herself, instead keeping a supply of chocolate at the ready. She'd been a guild leader but also liked running solo missions against impossible odds. She never revealed her stat breakdown but there was definitely high intellect and stamina and she had fortitude set to auto re-buff. She warned us she was probably going to reroll soon but we still weren't ready. I suspect it'll take this group of adventurers a while to find an equivalent replacement. Perhaps it'll never happen, coz some voids just can't be filled. That's a bit sad, huh. So I'll leave this: no one is ever truly gone, unless they are forgotten.

Warm memories of shared family times in Perth and Melbourne and Anne’s generous, gentle smile and engaging presence. Thankyou Anne . May you rest in the peace now .

My condolences on the loss of this amazing woman. We never met in person, but I've heard so much about her trailblazing career, kindness, and talents across so many areas. Her laboratory work would have led to treatments for people I know, and so touching my life in a small but critical way. Her many stellar qualities live on in her children - I know Julian as a research colleague. My sympathies to her family and loved ones. - Rebecca

Thank you for the opportunity and privilege to share on this tribute page about Anne - so blessed by her life, and the incredible family left behind - only in body. Her faithful and profound depth of love, service, kindness, insight, wisdom, and spirit so powerful and present.

“Returning from remote Kimberley desert communities to the big city over the years, was high on my anxiety list, and yet so seamlessly this was quelled by your incredible hospitality Anne - warm and non judgemental affirmation, I’m sure the latter all the more incredulous for my ignorant foibles. In a world, and especially also then, where so many are time poor regards vulnerable and marginalised peoples, you were a beacon of light, and as indeed I feel from the stories I hear so warmly regaled of you.

My prayer is one of gratitude for your loving, faith-filled life that profoundly touched and blessed so many and myself. May you rest now, and celebrate eternally in the glorious presence of your maker - friend and God.”

Dear Anne
I had the pleasure of working with you at Fremantle Hospital where we shared the back office. We had many conversations on life, kids and work. The deep and meaningful talks we had will stay with me forever. You taught me so much Anne, and I am very grateful for our friendship.
I'm so glad I got to see and speak to you the week before your passing. Although you couldn't speak I know you understood, sharp as ever as you always were!!
As I write this I raise a glass and toast to you Anne!!
Thanks for the memories.

RIP Anne

The first time I met and spoke to Anne she was sitting at the back of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church in Hilton after 7.30am Mass in early 2023. The sun was shining in on her through the window, and she looked so peaceful just sitting there. I stopped to say hello and commented on how quietly relaxed she looked just sitting there in the sun : ) That was the start of our friendship, and I thank God that I had the privilege of knowing her. As Anne’s health deteriorated and she was unable to go to Church I visited her at home. I soon realised how intelligent she was and did at times feel a little intimidated, but there was no need for this as Anne always made me feel comfortable, and I enjoyed our time and chats together. Even with the severe pain Anne must have been in she still had a smile and appeared to accept it all. Her love and faith in God was unwavering. I will always have that image of Anne sitting quietly towards the back of the Church after 7.30am Mass with the sun shining in on her. Anne was an inspiration to me. Rest in Peace dear Anne.
Love Maureen

Dear Anne, I was fortunate to see you through your last few months. Tho it wasn't a long time,it certainly was a great time. I wish I had more time with you even at the expense of your wit and humour. I hope Cadbury doesn't go out of business now you are getting your chocolate elsewhere. You are really missed in my daily schedule. Sue Brown xx

I first met Anne at Fremantle hospital when I was a young pharmacist with limited hospital experience. Anne had a lot of knowledge about the dispensary and manufacturing and was more than happy to guide me and teach me. She was very professional to me and the young pharmacists colleagues. She was always the person we turned to for help and knew she would be happy to oblige and assist us with her knowledge and experience. She was strong minded and would stick up to what is the right thing to do for the pharmacy department at Freo. I miss Anne as a friend and a reliable colleague. I was very sad to learn about her battle with end stage disease, as well as the pain and agony she had to deal with towards the end. Something that I would never expect a very close friend to go through and suffer. So I wish that she is in a better place now with God. Rest In Peace Anne.

I worked with Anne at Fremantle Hospital.

As a pharmacist, Anne devoted her career to the health and well-being of others. Her attention to detail was legendary, ensuring that every clinical trials prescription was filled with precision and care. She didn’t just dispense medication, she dispensed kindness and compassion, leaving a lasting impact on everyone she encountered.

Beyond her countless professional achievements, Anne had a delightful fondness for chocolate. She loved sharing a sneaky treat! It was a small but significant part of her personality, reminding us all to savour the sweet moments in life.

Rest in peace dear Anne.

Ever since I started working at Fremantle Hospital, Anne was the person I would seek for advice or for a chat. She knew so much about so many things and had so many stories to tell. She would proudly tell me stories about her children, then about her grandchildren. I missed her when she left Fremantle Pharmacy as she was just one of those people that left an impression on you. Rest in peace Anne and thank you for guiding me when I was new to the game x

Anne.Loved.Chocolate. She very much enjoyed a sugary/theobroma fix! I recall a time in the tearoom at work when Anne expressed her dissatisfaction that Cadbury had repackaged their confectionary blocks into smaller sizes yet still charged the same price for them. I still smile when I recall Anne’s outrage! When I last saw Anne I was delighted to see a box of After Eights and a Terrys Chocolate Orange within arms reach… Bless you Anne!

Dear Anne, you will be missed. Anne and I worked together in Fremantle hospital when I first joined as a junior pharmacist and she was in clinical trials. As our desks we're next to each other we spent many days discussing work, hobbies, life, she had so much knowledge and wisdom to share and if you took the time she was willing to share and always with that glint in her eye and occasional quiet giggle.
It's been years since I left Fremantle hospital but Anne you left an impression regardless. So sorry to hear of the pain of your last few days but I pray you're now in a better place.

Anne
You always took the time to check in and ask about me and my family. You were such a hard worker with so much pride in your work, to the point that opening hours needed to be changed to stop you staying back every day.
Thinking of your family. Rest in peace
Tanya x

THE ELEPHANT

Knowing Anne reminds me of the parable of the blind men and the elephant. Each man erroneously described the whole based on his subjective experience of a small part of the whole. Anne was content to let people think whatever they wanted about her. Only through hearing each others' stories can we comprehend the greater whole that is Anne.

At this point, Anne would say that it makes sense for me to compare her to an elephant, because that explains where I inherited my nose from. I'd say it was because she'd eaten enough chocolate to weigh in, then she'd threaten to sit on me.

Anne loved a good roast battle because she'd usually win, what with that galactic brain and vocabulary of hers. If she's beaten you before, now is your chance to score some easy shots while she's not around. Bear in mind that she'll settle the score when you meet her later.

We'll miss you Mum!

Anne was blessed with a deep faith and profound understanding of our God of Love. A faith expressed through her sense of social justice and brilliance in her world of pharmacy.
I am deeply grateful for the generosity and hospitality of Anne, Mark and Family in providing me accommodation in Melbourne and in Perth.
Knowing you are now in the fulfilment of Peace and Love.

When I had my first child Anne gave me a shoe box of hospital records, my own hospital records and an officeworks box of notebooks and graph paper so I could both journal and track the progress of my new baby against my own. It was a very Anne gift. What I learned going through those records years later was just how dogged Anne has been in sorting out medical issues I’d had as a small child. There were folders of correspondence and referrals. She wasn’t taking placation or dismissal, she wanted solutions and an action plan and eventually she did through sheer persistence get what she was after.

In the decades that followed she cherished every state and national record/medal, degree, award and achievement in a personal way that never made sense to me until I read the content of that box.

What made the contents of that box and the maternal battles they documented more astounding were the notations of post natal depression and the struggles Anne had in bonding with me. She was battling to help a baby she couldn’t bond with, and in spite of those issues she was unwavering in her advocacy. Those struggles with bonding lasted well into childhood but we found common ground in bird rescue, sport, social justice and environmental causes. Our last chat was about social justice issues and politics. Anne was a keen political commentator, finding common ground in that with my kids and enjoying frequent chats with them about environmental issues, saving native birds and women’s rights.

Anne was a foundation member of the WA Green’s Party under Dee Margetts. She might have been an introvert 1:1 but she also didn’t mind a good protest, from saving the Giblet Block to Reclaim the Night Marches, and supporting the Save the Franklin campaign in the late 70s & 80s. With a voice trained in decades of choral singing, Anne didn’t mind a good “voice projection” at a protest and made herself heard. She also penned many letters to the editor and to the Health Minister. Anne was the brainstrust behind dad’s successful political and election campaigns.

Anne also opposed the Australia Card back in the 80s and was a privacy FREAK. She’d hate the fact we are doing this memorial wall but she’d also be loving the memories, twitching at any stories ‘told wrong’ and itching to correct my spelling and grammar. She was a whip smart pedant who also REALLY loved a good wind up- so with that in mind - luv ya guts Mawm, you can sort my bad language when u catch me in the other side sis. Gonna celebrate your life with white chocolate (note: Anne believed in criminalising the sale of white chocolate and thought force-eating it should be a sentencing option). Miss ya heaps mum. Later.

The last time I spoke to Nana Anne, it was 12 am on a school night. When she called me I could tell that she knew she was dying, she could barely put her sentences together but I could tell that this was our last call. She used to call me at random times during the night where we would spend hours talking. I loved hearing about her Highschool story’s and talking about playing netball. I wish I could have one more phone call with you. Miss you so much, love Elke.

At first when I married Anne's son Julian, she was so very quiet, she didn't intrude in any way and I didn't even know she was so sick. She never asked, never demanded, never troubled us. In my culture, we don't do this, one person's trouble is the trouble of the whole family! At first I though that maybe she didn't like me, that maybe I wasn't smart enough for her son, because, above all else, she was so intimidatingly intelligent.

Julian said that Anne was a hard nut to crack. It's true, and I remember the specific moment where I saw that nut crack. We were visiting with my young daughter and they started to talk about birds. In a moment, with the light shining on them, I saw what it meant for Anne to open the drawbridge to her castle and let her soul step out for fresh air. The two of them would bond so closely over the years, around their shared love of animals. My extroverted daughter smiling, swinging her legs and prattling endlessly about bunnies, budgies, magpies, frogs, and so on, the introverted Anne just smiling, listening and prompting with little stories of her own. Through my daughter, I learned how to bond with Anne.

In Anne's final years she was in extreme pain and barely able to move, eventually becoming bed-bound. She never asked for help even though she needed it so badly. For six months I was priviledged to be able to help her and, during this time, I finally got to bond with her as she gave me the keys to her fortress.

Anne had so much love in her, so much compassion and love of the living, but she protected herself so tightly never seeking the compassion and love of others even though she needed it and treasured it.

What a gentle, humble and incredible woman she was. I want her to be recognised! She deserves it so much more than any of the loud ones who claw for it!

The six months I spent caring for her were so special. I didn't mind going to her, I loved it and I have so much regret now that I got back into the workforce and spent less time with her. I am so grateful to the Silverchain team for taking such good care of her, but I still regret not spending more time with her. We take things for granted and don't realise how valuable they are until they're gone.

THE CHOCOLATE NUT

Anne wasn't a quitter, that's for sure, and one thing she could never quit was chocolate. Growing up with military parents maybe she thought the Hun was going to launch a raid or something, because she used to stockpile chocolate reserves all through the house, like a squirrel stashing nuts for the winter.

We (the kids) would treasure-hunt around the house to find her stashes and deduct our finders fees. As creative as she was, she was outnumbered 3:1 and had no chance. We'd eventually find and raid every secret stash, behind the microwave, between towels in the cupboard, etc. Once I found a block in the wheel arch of the car where she'd temporarily hidden it in a panic as she saw us coming to do a baggage check on the groceries.

Years later I asked if there were any locations that we never busted. There were two: in the dirty laundry basket and in the veggie drawer. Smart. She figured out two of the places that naturally repel the teenager in its natural habitat.

By the time the grandkids came around, she'd discovered a new strategy. Build a large stash in the kitchen, within easy reach of 5 year olds, then tell them EXACTLY where it was. Now it was up to the old raiders to protect the stash against the new raiders. Thanks a lot mum, you sneak!

We're going to miss you so much and the kids are really going to miss "going shopping" (as they called it) in your kitchen.

For the pharmacists out there, if you ever find an expired block of Old Gold dark chocolate taped to the roof inside the drugs of addiction cabinet, it was probably her.