Dr. Adeline Fagan:
Dr. Adeline Fagan, a 28 year old gynecologist in Houston, had a promising future ahead of her. She was completing her second year of residency as an OB-GYN in Houston.
Adeline had become infected in July while doing a rotation treating coronavirus patients in the emergency room.
Fagan spent the last several weeks on a ventilator in the intensive care unit. She was doing well. Then the family received the news that she was suffering from a ‘massive brain bleed’ and required emergency surgery.
Her family was told that she had a ‘1 in a million’ chance of making it through the procedure. And that even if she survived, she would have several severe cognitive and sensory problems.
‘We spent the remaining minutes hugging, comforting, and talking to Adeline,’ the family wrote. ‘And then the world stopped.’
Jonathan Coelho:
Jonathan Coelho, 32, died after a brave battle with Covid-19.
His heartbroken wife Katie, 33, said when Jonathan’s phone was returned to her, she turned it on and found a note he’d written the day before he was intubated.
“I love you guys with all my heart and you’ve given me the best life I could have ever asked for.
“I am so lucky it makes me so proud to be your husband and the father to Braedyn and Penny.
“Katie you are the most beautiful caring nurturing person I’ve ever met…..you are truly one of a kind…..make sure you live life with happiness and that same passion that made me fall in love with you.
“Seeing you be the best mom to the kids is the greatest thing I’ve ever experienced.
“Let Braedyn know he’s my best bud and I’m proud to be his father and for all the amazing things he’s done and continues to do.
“Let Penelope know she’s a princess and can have whatever she wants in life.
“I’m so lucky…. ”
Bertha Esteban Diego:
A 25 year old mother in Mesa, Arizona with Covid-19 died while giving birth.
“Everything will be okay. Take care of my son,” were the last words from Bertha Esteban Diego to Gaspar Diego before going into labor and passing away.
Bertha and Gaspar got infected with COVID-19 just two weeks before giving birth to their second child, Daniel Diego. Daniel never got to meet his mother.
Skylar Herbert:
Skylar Herbert, the 5 year old daughter of two first responders, died from Covid-19.
She died after spending two weeks on a ventilator in Detroit.
Her mother, LaVondria Herbert, said: “We decided to take her off the ventilator today because her improvement had stopped.
“The doctors told us that it was possible she was brain dead. And we basically just knew she wasn’t coming back to us.”
Darla Checketts:
Darla Checketts, 57, was a teacher in Utah.
Darla was the mother of 5 children. Checketts had taught for most of her life, even teaching in West Africa through the Peace Corps.
“She’d gone to the doctor the night before, and the doctor gave her some cough stuff. And said: Well you’re not sick enough to put in the hospital. And she died the next morning,” said a friend and fellow teacher.
These are just 5 out of 200,000 Americans that have died in 2020 from Covid-19. And the numbers keep rising every single day.
They were all bright lights that were extinguished long before their time. All had stories. Dreams for the future. Some were children who will never grow up.
So many families have lost someone precious to them.
The richest country in the world failed them. When we should all have joined together, united, we went in different directions. Because this country is, sadly, deeply divided.
And now these stars no longer shine.
Thank you for this post on the Covid victims; you’re keeping them alive for their grieving families and it’s a reminder for all of us how deadly this virus is. WEAR a MASK please!
Hi Brenda thank you for high lighting the victims of the C19.It shows you care .I am writing from another part of the world from where you are.Over here there is no questions of having our rights to wear the masks.It is not an issue at all for as we think it is for our own protection and for our families and for our country that we must wear in order to contain the deadly virus.I believe it makes a difference in wearing it.I am sad that in the US the death rate is alarming.Everyday we pray for the nations and one day the C 19 will be defeated.
Heartfelt and very meaningful tribute. I am feeling quite emotional today, having just learned that a close coworker and her young children have been exposed – their babysitter tested positive. I work w/another young woman who was out 3 weeks in August recovering from covid. She experienced real trouble breathing. Today also I worked w/a client who has tested positive for the antibodies. Our rural community has been hard hit and at this point everyone knows someone who has had it. Thank you for posting this Brenda. I was very moved.
I have friends who literally say that it is a ploy, it is not real, it is a conspiracy to take away our rights and on. I would love for them to read this post, but sadly, I don’t think it would make a difference. Our country has become so polarized on everything and it has come down in every instance to you are either for me or against me . There is no middle ground, no compromise, no discussion , no cooperation. It is one of the saddest things I have ever seen and I am afraid will be the end if we don’t change something soon.
Thank you, Brenda, for being so inclusive in your post and showing people from all walks of life and of all ages. Every life is precious but I especially grieve for the loss of the young who never had a chance to live even a part of what should have been a long life full of love and laughter. I grieve for them and their parents. The loss of these teachers and doctors is a loss for our country as we need these people desperately. We need these teachers to educate our students and create doctors. We need our doctors obviously more than ever during this out of control pandemic. The tragedy is it did not have to be this way. We could have been New Zealand but instead our country with no clear leadership and a president calling it a Democratic hoax has left us in a quagmire of death & disease. We need to care for ourselves and one another by following Dr. Faucci’s guidelines. The CDC has been compromised and so now Faucci is our safest voice & leader. In about 40 days we need to make a change and vote for a more caring individual with civility and decorum and one who listens to the scientists. Science knows no country or political affiliation. Science brings us hope. Vote.
I think we should see more of these faces so society realizes this is no joke. I had just read about the young doctor. Such a waste of a life as all of them are. Thanks for recognizing these lovely people today💓
I think you’re absolutely right. We need to remember these are real people. People just like you & me. Losing them this way to what very likely could have been avoidable had we had leadership and consistent advice is unforgivable. I’ll be voting in hopes of making a change and a return to civility and caring for one another in our nation.
And how many of these folks were taking zinc, and the drug which has helped so many? Some doctors using it have lost no patients. Lead a horse to water…can’t make them drink. So sad. Cause we are all at the mercy of the choices made by medicals when it comes to prescriptions etc. Also, I would wonder whatever diseases these people might already have had going, as that tends to make us more apt to catch Covid or any other thing going around. I am in the midst of reading Eating Right 4 Your (blood) Type…an amazing book I highly recommend to anyone. Have already learned a lot that rings true in our clan…we are NOT all alike…and our needs cannot be fixed by a single solution either. But there are ways to help our bodies handle even disease in a way that we can survive. And frankly, doctors are not GOD and therefore do not always make the perfect choices for us…even if trying to do so. We must research and help ourselves so much as we can…the internet has made that much easier. Plenty of books out there with ideas too. THANKFULLY!! The CDC says that SINCE MAY, survival rates from Covid are 99.8% (rate from usual flu is 99.9%). I would hope that even more attention might be paid and solutions found for those who kill others from behind the wheel of their cars, because they are drunk. I can tell you, it is easier to deal with an accidental death due to disease than when a stupid drunk drives into a vehicle where your kin are and kills and maims them. How do I know? It has happened to me. I have missed my brother now all these many years due to the selfishness of a drunk…been 38 yrs this November. I have not heard anyone saying much of anything about drunk driving for a long time…and I am positive it has not ceased. So there are oh so many problems needing solved…some easier than a disease…and still it rages on….we live in a sad world.
Wanted to respond to the msg sent to you by Elizabeth, however, its not worth the energy I would have to put into it. Great post today Brenda. Now I will continue to wear my mask and continue to follow the rules!
So rude you are. Someone mourning the loss of her brother and you get snarky. Typical. My mom was in an assisted living home at the very beginning of this and they wouldn’t let us see her. Within a week she died. She didn’t have covid. She lost the will to live. She was hanging on by a thread and it pushed her over the edge. You want to say something about that? What about the leadership of cuomo sending infected patients back to nursing homes. Want to touch on that? So much for older lives mattering. Separating people by mask wearer or not. Do you know how ridiculous you all sound. Like it’s a badge of honor. My daughter has auto immune conditions and can’t wear a mask and has been tormented by the self righteous. Even when outside walking her dog not in close contact with others.
Yours is the most sensible post ( in my opinion) I am a health care professional with nearly thirty years behind me and I have seen everything , not including what I have experienced in my personal life. I doubt the numbers of covid deaths because we do not have all the facts. The young 28 year old doctor who died had underlying health conditions, one of them being respiratory but how does covid cause a brain bleed? I have many questions. I do believe much or most of this “pandemic” is political in the way it has been handled and it has stripped us of our rights and way of life. Don’t we have the right to pursue happiness? Ho can we do that if we are on lock down and unable to make a living? People are notable to pay their bills, pay their rent. Hairdressers are bein arrested yet rioters and looters are allowed to create mayhem in our towns and cities. A young woman is tased for resisting arrest for not wearing a mask yet rioters are not charged for attacking police, destroying businesses, etc. This is not a winnable topic of discussion.
Well written informative post today, Brenda, that speaks to those who don’t believe in this “hoax”. Talk to any health care professional, which many won’t even do, And they will hear first hand how this is very different than the flu for many people. We have a niece who is working with those who survived and she said it’s all ages, no Underlying problems That made them suffer the lingering affects of covid. We also had a great niece that survived it early on. We both wear our masks cause we care.
It’s American to care for our country to want people to live.
Every story brings tears to my eyes. This is such a difficult and divided time we are living in. I’m a mask wearer … and I wish everyone would do the same. It just might make a difference.
Good for you ! I’m a mask wearer also and I think it’s one of the most considerate & polite we can care for others in case we are contagious. In Asian countries it is common to wear a mask when I’ll with anything. We need to cultivate more politeness & civility in our country and truly love our neighbor.
A most wonderful post, Brenda ~ it really puts a human face on the virus.
Hugs ~
A lot of people don’t think that children and “young” people can die from COVID-19, but thousands have died in the United States. There are reasons why infection rates are surging at colleges all across the country, some have even closed back down, and why it is not safe in many areas to send your children back to unprepared schools that don’t have the air circulation abilities necessary to keep the air cleaner and don’t have the space to properly social distance. There are surges in cases right now going on in may states around the country, including my state of Wisconsin. Whether people want to believe it or not, more than 205,000 Americans have died according to this morning’s count at Worldometers/US; Wikipedia/US reports 203,000, and U.S. News and World Reports says that while John Hopkins “officially” announced we passed 200,000 American deaths from COVID-19, the author concedes that this happened several days ago. Last week alone (September 13-19, 2020) we added 249,637 new COVID-19 cases, and over 5,000 Americans died from it. Those are the numbers for one week, just shocking to me. I’ve been recording U.S. numbers daily since March 15, 2020, when it became evident that this was a serious pandemic of a deadly disease. Also not being told are the stories of people who have survived COVID-19 and are no longer hospitalized, but are suffering serious health issues including continued exhaustion, impaired cognitive abilities, permanent heart, lung, liver damage, and it may also permanently affect one’s circulatory system. Those thousands of survivors are suffering daily, and nobody hears about it. Until all Americans take this killer pandemic seriously, many will continue to unnecessarily die or survive with serious permanent disabling conditions.
Thank you for this post, Brenda! I don’t want to blame or point fingers; I just wish the message was louder and better understood. So many simply don’t believe or understand how real this pandemic (virus) is. May they just don’t want to believe or understand, I don’t know. It’s a puzzling time in our lives.
like smokers who never think it will affect them…
only covid … just like that sickening smoke… WILL.
it eventually affects us all … either ourselves or someone we know and love.
and our state is one of the most mask-politicized on the covid issue of all. our numbers climb daily.
it’s ridiculous really. the governor even refuses to wear one in public. this virus has no political party. it is simply a killer.
This is such great information to post. I hope people that do not believe this is a problem virus or that it even exists or do not want to wear masks should read this. This is a serious virus that has taken so many lives of such beautiful people. xoxo
Thank you for this, Brenda. No, it’s not just “old, sick people who had one foot in the grave already.”
It is heartbreaking to see these young vibrant people who have lost their lives. We are a country that is made of 50 states and each state has a governor that made a decision that they thought was best, right or wrong it is the way it is. I have to be honest, I have friends in Spain, France and Germany and although there were in lockdown for many months and they do not feel based upon the numbers in their country that their country did any better fighting the virus or keeping the numbers down.
Sadly the country is divided on so many things and not just the virus and frankly I blame both sides and all politicians. I personally do not believe that they represent us or even care about us. Ego is a dangerous thing and having worked in Washington D.C I can tell you that it is a rare, almost like a unicorn to see a politician that does not have a big ego and that does not put his view, his family and and his interests first.
Just my opinion. By the way I am respectful of all opinions written here and am always open to a calm, peaceful discussion.
Thank you Brenda for shining a light on these beautiful young people who have gone on to a better place. My thoughts are with them and their families.
Thank you. Now, if this makes only 1 person think “I’ll put a mask on, I have nothing to complain about”. Thank you again. Stay safe.