When my husband was 5 years old, his father was hospitalized and never came back home.  He lived with his mother and sister growing up. When he was 17 he joined the Air Force to get money for school.  He served in Vietnam during the war.  He had a love of flying and did for quite a few years after his discharge.  He loved sports especially his beloved Yankees and Indianapolis Colts.  He could name any player on any team with their stats.  He coached Little League for years, even after our son graduated. He was a really great man, you were always left a little better if you had a chance to cross paths with Jerry. His greatest pride was our son, Jeff, especially when Jeff graduated with a PharmD.  That was one of his best days ever!

“He was such a fantastic father, husband, and friend… not a day goes by that we don’t wish he was here.”

Our COVID-19 story (the one that changed our whole life forever) began the week of March 9th, 2020. The Coronavirus was barely being talked about in the United States at this time.

My husband, Jerry, and I went to visit Jerry’s elderly Aunt, who was very ill, at JFK Hospital in Edison, New Jersey.  It was the very beginning of the pandemic and the message all over the news was only to “wash your hands”. Mask mandates were not yet in effect and the worry of contracting the virus wasn’t in too many of our minds, just yet. We were living life, as usual, not knowing the devastation that the novel Coronavirus would soon cause 66 miles away from us in New York City. We also had no idea that it would shortly change our own lives FOREVER.

The week following the hospital visit, I started to feel ill, I had a slight fever and no energy.  Jerry was still feeling okay, but the week after he started to get very sick. He had a fever, no appetite, gastrointestinal problems & he was very weak. We saw his primary care doctor, who told him to take over the counter medicines and sent him home to bed.

On Saturday, March 28th, only 19 days later, he couldn’t stay awake and his oxygen saturation level was in the ’80s. (Normal range is 94 and above) I became very worried about him and I drove him to the hospital. He was tested for and found to be positive for COVID-19; he was immediately put into ICU and placed on a ventilator.

He remained in the hospital and on the ventilator for 4 weeks. We thought he was improving; we were so elated when he wrote a note to us, saying he was feeling better and he wanted to go home.  As soon as he was taken off the vent, he went down-hill and was put into hospice on April 24th. We knew he would not recover and our son Jeff, (age 36), my daughter-in-law, Laura, and I were grateful to have the opportunity to be with him to tell him goodbye and express how much we loved him. (We were blessed, as we know now that due to hospital/hospice regulations, many people do not have a chance to be with their loved one in their final hours or to hold their hand and provide them comfort.) Sadly, Jerry passed away in the early morning hours of April 25th.

He did not deserve to die that way.  We were married 2 weeks shy of 43 years.

I love you always and forever, Janice..