Friends remember Anchorage crash victims as kind and giving student athletes

Friends say Amelia Nowak was an uplifting force, a determined student and the “one-person welcoming committee” for newcomers on Anchorage’s South High basketball team.

Derek Duerr was dedicated, selfless and kind, according to friends: He had a knack for connecting with a wide range of people and always strove to do what was right.

Days after they were killed in a fiery vehicle crash south of downtown Anchorage, Duerr, 20, and Nowak, 18, were remembered by friends, coaches and teammates as remarkable young student athletes with promising opportunities on the horizon.

Both Nowak and Duerr died early Sunday in a wreck after their vehicle was hit by another driver who police have accused of driving drunk. Matthew Charles Davis faces charges of manslaughter and driving under the influence linked to the crash. Davis, a 23-year-old soldier in the 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team at JBER, told investigators he was so drunk he didn’t remember driving, according to charging documents filed against him.

A day after the collision, bouquets of flowers decorated the ground beneath a charred tree at 15th Avenue and Cordova Street, where the crash occurred. The mothers of both victims spoke tearfully about their children at a court hearing Monday. Mourners and friends made regular visits to the site early this week.

Nowak was a recent graduate of South High. She was weeks away from taking the next big step in her life — embarking on a college career at Western Washington University, where she planned to study medicine and play on the basketball team.

Duerr was also taking a big new step in his life. He graduated from East High in 2021 and was heading to Bellevue Community College, where he also planned to play basketball.

The two were dating and worked together at the Alaska Club location in South Anchorage. They had hoped to stay in touch as they started new paths, according to Fred Falealili, a friend of Duerr’s who worked at the fitness center with the couple.

“They were going to be an hour apart,” Falealili said. “They were planning on seeing each other every month.”

Nowak arrived in Alaska from Texas in 2018, according to friends. She made an immediate impression on the student body at South.

Abigail Branet played basketball for the Wolverines with Nowak. She said that when the two of them met, Nowak radiated positivity and her upbeat personality became contagious.

“When we were down, she’d be there picking us up,” Branet said. “If anyone was on the floors, she was the first person to go pick them up.”

Taylor Dumlao met Nowak in an AP World History course shortly after she arrived at South and had a similar experience.

“She was super caring,” Dumlao said. “She loved everybody, and even if you weren’t on her good side, if you needed her, she was still there.”

The two became close friends and took a senior trip to Hawaii together in July. There was plenty of beach time and shopping on the Maui trip, Dumlao said. But the highlight was a late-night star-gazing excursion.

“We went and watched the stars,” Dumlao said. “It was a really far drive up a mountain. She loved it. It was her favorite thing. We were there for like, two to three hours, and she was just sitting outside the car watching the stars.

“Everything felt so close to us when we were up there. It was gorgeous.”

Belen Marchant was a teammate and friend of Nowak’s at South High and also became a friend of Duerr’s.

“She’s probably one of the most positive people I’ve ever met,” Marchant said of Nowak. “She was incredibly determined. She had this spark and fire in her that I’ve never seen before.”

Nowak had dyslexia, a condition Marchant is also diagnosed with. She said they laughed about their shared difficulties when it came to reading. She admired Nowak for her drive to excel in academics.

“She was determined to do well in all of her classes, and school always came first,” Marchant said.

On the basketball team, Nowak was both feisty and friendly.

South High girls basketball coach Larry Wilson called her “the heartbeat of the team,” describing her as a player who “did a lot of the dirty work for us. She dove on the floor for the ball, and played tough defense.”

She was also the team captain, which came with other responsibilities.

Wilson referred to her as a one-person welcoming committee, embracing and mentoring younger players.

“As a person, she was extremely kind, a fun-loving person, but also a great student,” Wilson said.

Duerr and Nowak undeniably bonded over their shared love for basketball.

Kyler Johnson had known Duerr since they were both at Wendler Middle School.

“He was always a good guy, always tried to do the right thing, always the first one in the gym, and always working,” Johnson said. “You’d go to the YMCA and see him there.”

Duerr played as a freshman and sophomore at East High and was a student manager as a junior and senior. He continued to put work into his game and improve, intending to play at Bellevue.

He was a photographer who shot photos of local athletes and sporting events and was well-known in the basketball community, from Anchorage high schools and beyond.

He became friends with Falealili working together at the Alaska Club.

“We connected over basketball, we liked to listen to Kanye West and J. Cole,” Falealili said. “We both went to the same high school, so it was kind of easy for us to talk about all those common interests. He was the kid who is always smiling.”

At 28, Falealili was a good bit older than Duerr and viewed him as a younger brother. But the gap in their ages never made a difference, he said.

“The age difference never really bothered me,” Falealili said. “Our friend group was really mixed. There was a 30-year-old and a 39-year-old. He was always part of it, that’s just the kind of kid he was.”

Marchant met Duerr through her friendship with Nowak, but said he’d become a good friend as well.

“I saw them both right before they passed and I think I was the last person they saw,” Marchant said. “He just gave me a hug and told me how much he loved me and that he couldn’t wait to hang out again.”

Falealili had plans to get together to celebrate Duerr’s 21st birthday, coming up in mid-October.

“Our birthdays are one day apart,” Falealili said. “So we were planning our birthday, and me coming up down there to Washington to hang out. He was looking forward to it.”

A celebration of life is planned for Duerr and Nowak from noon to 4 p.m. Friday at the Bear Tooth Theatrepub.