Katherine Ann Berman, wife of longtime ESPN broadcaster Chris Berman, was one of two drivers whose lives ended tragically in a crash in western Connecticut Tuesday.
Berman, 67, a former teacher and mother of two, died after the Lexus she was driving hit an SUV driven by Edward Bertulis, 87, of Waterbury.
The crash happened on a state road in the small town of Woodbury, state police said. They released the names of the drivers — the only ones in the two cars — early Wednesday.
Katherine and Chris Berman were together more than 30 years. In the 1980s, Chris faked car trouble for the opportunity to ask her for a date, The Courant’s Michael Arace wrote in 1993.
They were married in 1983, when Katherine was a fourth-grade teacher in Waterbury, according to their wedding announcement in the New York Times.
Late Wednesday, the Berman family issued a statement: “We are overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and sympathy from so many folks we know, and so many others we look forward to knowing. Kathy Berman had a huge heart, and this would have warmed hers beyond belief. It certainly warmed ours. All of us need to keep the family of Edward Bertulis in our thoughts and prayers as well.”
Katherine Alexinski was a graduate of Waterbury’s Wilby High School, her wedding announcement in the Waterbury Republican-American said.
An elementary education major, she attended UConn from the fall of 1967 through the spring of 1971, according to Stephanie Reitz, university spokeswoman. She received a bachelor’s degree in education with honors on June 7, 1971.
Berman worked at Waterbury public schools from 1972 to 1987, teaching fourth grade at Chase Elementary School and later, first grade at Rotella Elementary School, school records show.
She also spent more than 20 years sharing literacy in underprivileged communities as a board member and president of the Literacy Volunteers of Greater Waterbury, executive director Tina Agati said Wednesday. Her involvement spanned the organization, from fundraising to reading picture books to children.
“Even though she had been out of the classroom for many years, she was just a natural teacher,” Agati said. “And adults, who work so hard to improve their lives, she was always so supportive of them as well.”
She continued to contribute to the organization after leaving the board, Agati said.
“She and Chris made such a great foundation for our organization and her spirit will live on,” Agati said. “She left quite a legacy.”
Stephen A. Smith, a co-host on ESPN’s First Take, called Berman’s death “shocking” and “incredibly devastating” Wednesday morning on the show. “Can it get any worse than this? I can’t imagine.” He said he had just heard the news a half-hour earlier.
Pointing out that ESPN is like a family, co-host Max Kellerman said, “to think that [Chris Berman] has now lost a member of his family … suddenly, before her time, is just unfathomably tragic and sad.”
ESPN’s Adam Schefter, a regular with Chris Berman on the network’s NFL pregame show, tweeted “Our hearts are heavy at ESPN as we report the tragic news that Kathy Berman, wife of Chris Berman, was killed in a car accident Tuesday.”
John Skipper, president of ESPN, released a statement about Katherine Berman’s death.
“This is a devastating tragedy and difficult to comprehend. Chris is beloved by all his ESPN colleagues and for good reason: He has a huge heart and has given so much to so many over the years,” he said. “We know how much his family means to him and all we can do at a moment like this is give him the love and support he will surely need at this hour. Our thoughts and prayers are with Chris, Meredith, Doug and the entire family.”
Troopers are investigating the possibility that Bertulis suffered a medical emergency right before Berman’s Lexus crashed into the back of his car on Route 64 near Tuttle Road, a state police source told The Courant.
Bertulis’ daughter, Nancy Bertulis, said her father was healthy and drove the speed limit. He was coming from the cemetery — where he was visiting her mother’s grave — at the time of the crash, she said.
According to the state police, the double-fatal crash happened about 2:15 p.m. when a 2003 Lexus SC 430 driven by Berman and a 2003 Ford Escape X driven by Bertulis were headed east on Sherman Hill Road, about a mile and a half from Quassy Amusement Park in Middlebury. The Lexus — owned by Chris Berman — was behind the Ford.
The Lexus rear-ended Bertulis’ Ford and continued traveling east, veering off the road to the right, state police said. The Lexus went down an embankment and overturned in a small body of water, state police said. The Ford also went off the road, striking a utility pole and landing in the middle of the road on its roof.
Bertulis, of Welles Street in Waterbury, was taken to Waterbury Hospital, where he died, police said. Berman, of Peach Tree Court in Cheshire, died at the scene. Berman had a seat belt on, a police report said; Bertulis did not.
Chris Berman is one of the most recognizable sports broadcasters in the history of televised sports. Born in Greenwich, his sportscasting career began at Hartford’s WVIT as a weekend sports anchor.
He joined ESPN at age 24, just one month after its founding. Wednesday was his 62nd birthday.
Edward Bertulis’ daughter, Nancy Bertulis, released a statement on behalf of her siblings.
“This is a difficult time for both families,” she said. “We would appreciate our privacy as we grieve our loss. My father was healthy and happy and drove the speed limit. He was coming from the cemetery, where he went every day to visit my mother. He had five children, seven grandchildren and two great children.”
Their mother died in August of 2015, Bertulis said.
Courant staff writers Rebecca Lurye, Kevin Vellturo and Chris Brodeur contributed to this story.
