Lost on the Frontline

America’s health care workers are dying. In some states, medical personnel account for as many as 20% of known coronavirus cases. They tend to patients in hospitals, treating them, serving them food and cleaning their rooms. Others at risk work in nursing homes or are employed as home health aides.

“Lost on the Frontline,” a collaboration between KHN and The Guardian, has identified 922 such workers who likely died of COVID-19 after helping patients during the pandemic.

We have published profiles for 164 workers whose deaths have been confirmed by our reporters.

Some cases are shrouded in secrecy. Our team contacts family members, employers and medical examiners to independently confirm each death. Many hospitals have been overwhelmed and workers sometimes have lacked protective equipment or suffer from underlying health conditions that make them vulnerable to the highly infectious virus. In the chaos, COVID casualties might otherwise get overlooked.

This project aims to document the lives of U.S. health workers who die of COVID-19, and to understand why so many are falling victim to the pandemic.

Home Health Aide Was Active in Her Local Community

(Naorin Ahmed)

Rashida Ahmed

Age: 46Occupation: Home health aidePlace of Work: CarePro of NY in New York CityDate of Death: April 30, 2020

There’s not a single photo of Rashida Ahmed where she doesn’t have “a very, very big smile,” said Naorin Ahmed, her daughter.

Rashida emigrated from her native Bangladesh in 2015 to be closer to her daughter, who had moved to the U.S. for an arranged marriage a few years earlier. In Queens, she became active in the local Bengali community, joining a local rights group that advocates for South Asian and Indo-Caribbean workers.

“She was a very people’s person,” Naorin said. “If you met her, you would remember her.”

Rashida loved to sing and cook — Naorin especially relished her biryani. Community activist Fakrul Islam Delwar called Rashida a “very helping, kind-hearted person” who brought food to her neighbors in Jackson Heights.

Rashida cared for an older woman on Long Island who died on March 30 of COVID-19 complications. It’s unclear whether Rashida became infected from her patient or during her train commute. She developed debilitating fatigue and fever, checking into a hospital on March 31.

Representatives from CarePro confirmed that Rashida worked in an area with many COVID-19 patients and said that all aides are provided the necessary personal protective equipment.

Naorin said her mother did not have adequate PPE but, despite the risks, insisted on caring for her patient.

— Elizabeth Lawrence, Kaiser Health News | Published July 29, 2020

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Working Two Jobs, She Was Still the ‘Best Listener Ever’

Clea Alverio-Hume and her husband, Dave (Josh Steele/Out of the Woods Photography )

Clea Alverio-Hume

Age: 57Occupation: Medical records director and lead admissions coordinating assistantPlace of Work: Queen Anne Healthcare and Swedish Medical Center-First Hill, both in SeattleDate of Death: June 12, 2020

Flowers of all kinds — particularly purple ones — were Clea Alverio-Hume’s passion.

She helped her mother, Felicidad, 82, tend them. Husband Dave often left bouquets at two health care facilities where she worked a combined 72 hours weekly. She did so, he said, to spare her daughter, Minerva, from working while in college.

Over Memorial Day, Clea and Dave started to build a shed as a prelude to her own flower garden.

Nursing a cough, Clea was tested for COVID-19 that Monday. Thirty-six hours later, Dave summoned paramedics. The test they administered came back positive.

Erin Doss, administrator of Queen Anne, where Clea began working soon after emigrating from the Philippines in 1994, said they don’t know whether she was exposed there. “We miss her terribly,” Doss said. On its website, the facility reports two staff deaths, including Clea’s, and 19 patient deaths.

Clea’s Queen Anne colleagues gave Dave a framed photo of her and Minerva with dozens of notes on the matting.

“They all say the same thing — how much she meant to them … the best listener ever,” he said. “Clea has touched hundreds in that manner.”

— Cynthia Mitchell | Published July 29, 2020

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Social Worker Was a ‘Voice for the City’

(Paula Jackson)

Lisa Burhannan

Age: 50Occupation: Social workerPlace of Work: Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice in Harrisburg, PennsylvaniaDate of Death: June 11, 2020

In June 2015, Lisa Burhannan rode to Nashville with “her babies,” a gospel dance troupe — God’s Chozen Praise — that was performing on “Bobby Jones Presents.” Burhannan coached the young women through their Marvin Gaye number that weekend and at many local shows afterward.

“Beyond the shows, she brought the ladies together,” said Portia Bolen-Geter, her aunt. “She taught them, by example, how to live.”

Described by her mother, Paula Jackson, as an “energizer bunny,” Burhannan was committed to her community. She provided trauma rehabilitation to victims of crime, and as a volunteer chaplain at Pinnacle Medical Center, Burhannan counseled grieving families.

“She had a servant’s heart,” said Jackson, “a true voice for the city.”

When Pennsylvania entered lockdown in late March, Burhannan did what she could — including delivering masks to clients. The family said she was finding her own protective equipment; CSSJ did not respond to requests for comment.

On May 27, a “horrible” cough worsened, and Burhannan asked Jackson to write down requests for her own funeral. She wanted CeCe Winans’ “Alabaster Box” sung. The next day, she was hospitalized.

Burhannan’s funeral proceeded as she’d hoped. The mayor spoke, her babies danced, and the mourners sang her home.

— Eli Cahan | Published July 29, 2020

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A Public Servant Who Was the Heart of Her Community

Priscilla Carrow

Age: 65Occupation: Coordinating managerPlace of Work: Elmhurst Hospital in Queens, New YorkDate of Death: March 30, 2020

On March 10, when Priscilla Carrow attended her community board’s last in-person meeting, she brought masks, hand sanitizer and information on COVID-19 for every committee member.

“She was someone who you could go to if you had a problem in the community, and you needed answers,” said Ashley Reed, who served on the board with Carrow. “We always counted on her to be on the front lines of what was going on.”

Carrow, who was born in Harlem and moved to Queens as a child, was passionate about giving back. In addition to serving on Queens Community Board 4, she was a shop steward in the local chapter of the Communications Workers of America union.

“She loved helping people. She knew she was blessed in her life, so she wanted to carry that blessing on to others,” said Gloria Middleton, president of CWA Local 1180. Her sense of civic duty, paired with a bubbly personality and ability to command a room, made her a natural leader.

Elmhurst Hospital was inundated with COVID-19 cases. Carrow, a year from retirement, managed the inventory and distribution of PPE to health care workers amid severe shortages. But friends say she was exposed to the virus at work and hospitalized in March.

Her death was met with an outpouring of grief on social media from neighbors, friends and her congresswoman, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

— Isoke Samuel, City University of New York | Published July 29, 2020

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‘He Did All the Unseen Things to Help Out’

(Kyle Charon)

Paul Charon

Age: 62Occupation: Traveling radiology technologistPlace of Work: Multiple facilities via Premier Healthcare Staffing in Oswego, New YorkDate of Death: June 5, 2020

A devoted member of the Adirondack 46ers mountain club, Paul Charon would, without hesitation, clear branches that blocked a trail. When hikers left Nutri-Grain wrappers in the bramble, he picked them up. When overflowing creeks obstructed a path, he bridged them.

The Saratoga Springs, New York, native “loved being one with nature,” said his son, Kyle Charon. “He did all the unseen things to help out” so others could enjoy it, too.

Charon also spent over three decades with the Red Cross, where he volunteered during hurricanes, floods and wildfires across the country, Kyle said.

During quarantine, Charon dropped by his adult children’s homes unannounced with gifts like a Dutch oven and a pullup bar — he wanted to create a sense of normalcy for them.

As regional COVID caseloads mounted, he continued caring for patients. From March to May, he performed X-rays at dozens of facilities near Rochester, Utica and Poughkeepsie. Friends on staff welcomed him with coffee, snacks and masks (he lacked sufficient protective equipment, Kyle said). Premier Healthcare Staffing did not respond to requests for comment.

On May 9, feeling “a little down,” Charon requested a pot of Kyle’s signature vegetable soup. But it didn’t help, and on May 14, he was hospitalized. A few weeks later, after his father suffered several strokes and multiple-organ failure, Kyle signed a do-not-resuscitate order.

— Eli Cahan | Published July 29, 2020

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Home Health Aide ‘Embodied Family in Every Sense’

(Jodie Antonio)

Roberta Gruber

Age: 66Occupation: Home health aidePlace of Work: Circle of Life Soaring Eagles Home Care Services in Gallup, New MexicoDate of Death: May 29, 2020

Months before Halloween, Roberta Gruber would start sewing.

She’d craft costumes for “her children and everyone else’s children,” said Jodie Antonio, her daughter. Then, dressed as Betty Boop, she’d transform her two-story home into the community’s haunted house, going “all out to make it spooky spectacular,” said Evander Antonio, her grandson.

Beyond Halloween, she had an open-door policy, allowing struggling neighbors to stay indefinitely. “She’d leap to help someone in need,” Jodie said.

On the job, Gruber would drive Evander hours away to chop firewood or run errands for elderly clients he called shicheii (grandpa) or shimasani (grandma). “K’é means family” in Navajo, said Evander. “She embodied that in every sense.”

As the coronavirus spread, Gruber continued to care for patients and sewed masks for herself and others.

Her employer said that it had distributed thousands of gloves and masks since mid-March but that it is impossible to rule out the possibility that she contracted the virus, despite precautions.

On April 16, Gruber started to feel “off,” and on April 26, she tested positive for COVID-19. The next morning, she developed excruciating leg pain. After being sent home by one hospital, she was admitted to another and urgently evacuated to Albuquerque.

Four failed surgeries and 36 hours later, Gruber was in a coma. The family never spoke with her again.

— Eli Cahan | Published July 29, 2020

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Youth Mental Health Counselor ‘Had a Heart of Gold’

(Vicky Howard Stewart)

Torrin Howard

Age: 26Occupation: Mental health counselorPlace of Work: Boys & Girls Village in Milford, ConnecticutDate of Death: April 7, 2020

Torrin Howard was a fixture in his hometown’s gospel music scene, having played for greats like Donnie McClurkin, Marvin Sapp and Dorinda Clark-Cole. “Anyone who heard him connected with him,” said his aunt, Vicky Howard Stewart.

As children, Torrin and his siblings formed a family band, and they traveled to churches, community centers and gyms across the country. They’d load the bus on Friday and return home by Sunday night — the children, half-asleep, already swaddled in safari pajamas.

Torrin’s teachers adored him, and his football teammates looked up to the “Tank.” As an adult, he connected with the troubled youth for whom he provided behavioral health and rehabilitation coaching.

In late March, Torrin developed persistent flu-like symptoms. “PPE was in extremely limited supply” at that time and “used only for individuals who actively had symptoms,” per CDC guidance, his employer said.

On March 28, Torrin tested positive. A week later, he was hospitalized and intubated.

“Next thing we knew, he was gone,” said Howard Stewart.

— Eli Cahan | Published July 29, 2020

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‘When You Lose People Like Sue, You Lose the Community’s Glue’

(Royal Davis)

Sue Williams-Ward

Age: 68Occupation: Home health aidePlace of Work: Together We Can Services in IndianapolisDate of Death: May 2, 2020

Three decades ago, Sue Williams-Ward and her husband, Royal Davis, bought a bar.

The dive — an azure duplex in Indianapolis’ Haughville neighborhood — made decent money; but after “seeing the love of God,” Davis said, they turned it into a community center. The center is now a bodega and hub for social activism.

“We took it as our responsibility to bring light to the too-often-forgotten people in this community,” Davis said.

A home health aide, Williams-Ward bathed, dressed, and fed her clients. She brought her grandchildren to visit them and often delivered Thanksgiving turkeys and Christmas hams.

In early March, Williams-Ward took a new job, earning $13 an hour (a $1 raise). She was hired after other workers resigned due to concerns over COVID-19 safety concerns.

Within weeks, she started coughing. She kept going to work, Davis said, without protective equipment. Her employer did not respond to requests for comment.

She was hospitalized and intubated March 23 and died six weeks later.

“When you lose people like Sue,” Davis said, “you lose the community’s glue.”

— Eli Cahan | Published July 29, 2020

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A Tireless Advocate for Patients

(Abigail Baltazar)

Nicanor “Nick” Baltazar

Age: 60Occupation: Director of nursingPlace of Work: Long Island Care Center in Flushing, New YorkDate of Death: March 31, 202

Nick Baltazar loved to sing, even when no one was at home. His wife, Grace, and daughter, Abigail, often joined in. Nick even brought a karaoke machine to the nursing home where he worked, and he and Abigail once serenaded patients there with “Endless Love.”

Nick had boundless energy. He exercised twice a day and walked to work. He was a tireless advocate for patients and his employees, taking novice nurses under his wing and helping them achieve their dream jobs.

A cook and baker, he would stay up past 10 p.m. baking treats to share with co-workers; his most famous treat was cassava cake. When Abigail was studying nursing in Buffalo, her parents would pack the car with groceries and Tupperware full of food he’d spent the whole week making. “I would tell him, you know, there are grocery stores in Buffalo!” Abigail said.

Avid gardeners, Nick and Grace started with mint and basil. Their last harvest was so abundant that he invited co-workers to pick peppers, tomatoes and bitter melon.

After 40 years in nursing, he planned on retiring in two more.

On March 20, a cough and fever came on after work. He tested positive for COVID-19 and, within two weeks, died waiting to be admitted to the hospital.

Long Island Care Center did not respond to requests for comment.

— Natalie Mufson | Published July 24, 2020

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Grandmother Worked Extra Hours in Nursing Home Ravaged by COVID

Kettely Desire

Age: 64Occupation: Certified nursing assistantPlace of Work: Alliance Health at West Acres in Brockton, MassachusettsDate of Death: April 11, 2020

In April, the coronavirus swept through the nursing home and rehabilitation center where Haitian-born Kettely Desire had worked part time. By April 25, 23 staff members had tested positive for COVID-19, and 22 of the facility’s patients had died, according to The Boston Globe. By that time, Desire, who’d been planning a party for her granddaughter’s high school graduation in Miami, had already died.

Her son Frantz told the Globe that Desire had just completed a double shift in late March before feeling ill. She was hospitalized and put on a ventilator. Frantz confirmed to KHN that her death certificate names complications from COVID-19 as cause of death.

Alliance Health spokesperson Kate Kahn said the facility started having staff “wear protective gear before it was mandated by the state.”

“Plans are underway to create a memorial at the facility in [Desire’s] honor,” Kahn said. “She was well respected for her compassionate caregiving and professional demeanor.”

Desire has been laid to rest in a mausoleum in Florida, where Frantz lives. Her Facebook page reveals an enduring love for Haitian music and her Brockton church, where congregants are shown dancing and singing during holiday celebrations.

— Jessica Klein | Published July 24, 2020

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‘Brilliant’ Eye Specialist Knew How to Party, Too

(Elana Einhorn)

Norman Einhorn

Age: 69Occupation: OptometristPlaces of Work: Central New Jersey rehabilitation centersDate of Death: June 6, 2020

He could talk with anybody, on any subject. He could sing. He loved wine, Italian dinners and concerts: Springsteen, Madonna, Diana Ross. Always with his wife, Joy. “He was brilliant,” she said, “and he also liked to party.”

Norman had had an optometry practice since 1983 but also worked in neuro-optometry, helping people whose illnesses or injuries impair their vision. He treated stroke patients, Special Olympic athletes and accident victims. “It’s like physical therapy,” Joy said, “but for the eyes.”

After governor’s orders shuttered his office, he saw neuro-optometry patients at three rehab centers. At one, his family believes, he contracted COVID-19.

In May, the Einhorns visited family in Connecticut. They left for home May 9, stopping to see two patients at Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of Tinton Falls. Days later, Norman lost his appetite and started coughing. Other family members got sick, too — but not the Connecticut crew. Norman died in the hospital about two weeks after diagnosis.

Joy learned the rehab centers were accepting COVID patients, who were segregated. In a statement, Todd Cooperman, medical director at Tinton Falls, praised Norman as “an extremely skilled neuro optometrist” with “a wonderful bedside manner.” He didn’t address questions about COVID-19.

Norman thought he was protecting himself, Joy said, “but it’s just so contagious.”

— Maureen O’Hagan | Published July 24, 2020

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Lab Assistant Spoke Out About Employee Safety

(Vanessa Campos)

Sally Lara

Age: 62Occupation: Lab assistantPlace of Work: Riverside Community Hospital in Riverside, CaliforniaDate of Death: June 8, 2020

Sally Lara was so supportive of daughter Vanessa Campos’ childhood dream of becoming an astronaut that before middle school the two had traveled to Kennedy Space Center, eaten astronaut food and ridden in a flight simulator.

Lara, 62, extended her generosity and kindness broadly, Campos said. She recalls her mother helping homeless women regain custody of their children and treating them to a fancy meal to celebrate.

When COVID-19 came to the hospital, people were scared. So Lara picked up extra shifts. She pressed management about employee safety and PPE practices, encouraging her daughter to do the same at her nursing home job.

Lara developed symptoms on Mother’s Day.

Riverside Community Hospital said in a statement it was devastated by the loss of Lara, also “our focus has been on protecting our caregivers and colleagues and ensuring they have enough personal protective equipment.”

During her mother’s month of illness, Campos drove in the car with her husband, tears streaming down their faces and praying for a miracle, she recalled. The hospital staff tried everything, Campos said.

Her final words reached her mother through an iPad at her ear: “If it’s your time, go peacefully. If it’s not your time, I need you to fight. I love you so much; thank you for fighting.”

— Christina Jewett | Published July 24, 2020

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‘A Good Soul’ Who Aspired to Be a Nurse — Like Her Mom

(Roland Mack)

Chantee Mack

Age: 44Occupation: Disease intervention specialistPlace of Work: Prince George’s County Health Department Cheverly Health Center in Cheverly, MarylandDate of Death: May 11, 2020

To her younger brother, Chantee Mack was “a second mom.”

“I feel alone now that she’s gone,” said Roland Mack, 38.

The two, along with brother Aric, grew up in Prince George’s County, Maryland. Their single mother, Sue Ann Mack, a nurse, sometimes took Chantee to work, inspiring a love of health care.

For 19 years, Chantee served the community at the health department, where one of her jobs was to tell people the results of tests for sexually transmitted diseases.

Chantee, who never married or had children, considered her mother her best friend. The two lived together for years, and when Sue Ann became paraplegic, Chantee cared for her. When her mother died a decade ago, Chantee sank into a depression, but she remained committed to helping people. She hoped eventually to follow her mother into nursing.

“She was a good soul,” Roland said.

Family and friends believe she contracted the COVID-19 from a co-worker in March when, according to union officials, personal protective equipment was spotty and people were not routinely social distancing. Health department leaders wouldn’t discuss Chantee’s death but said the safety of workers is a top priority and workplace protections now include PPE and social distancing.

Chantee was hospitalized in mid-April, staying on a ventilator for four weeks before slipping away.

— Laura Ungar | Published July 24, 2020

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Father of Three Juggled Jobs at Three Nursing Homes

(The Moise family)

Paul Moise

Age: 50Occupations: Subacute unit manager and licensed practical nursePlaces of Work: Alameda Center for Rehabilitation & Healthcare in Perth Amboy, New Jersey; Clark Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Clark, New Jersey; Brandywine Living in New JerseyDate of Death: April 12, 2020

Paul Moise had been taking online medical classes to further his career when the coronavirus emerged at one of the rehabilitation centers where he worked. Moise’s wife, Rose, recalled Alameda Center having trouble getting masks, so “he was ordering his own.”

The Alameda Center did not respond to requests for comment.

Paul’s job was “very stressful for him,” Rose said, “losing the people he knew, the patients he was taking care of dying like that.”

By early April, Moise began experiencing shortness of breath and stayed home from work — without paid sick leave. His wife said he requested a coronavirus test but was diagnosed with pneumonia instead. He died within days without being tested for COVID-19. The coroner confirmed it as his cause of death.

Rose, also a nurse, fell ill, too, making it hard to care for their three, school-age children.

Moise, who was born in Haiti and loved playing soccer, worked at three assisted living centers. “He was a good worker,” Rose said, “because he was a good team leader.”

— Jessica Klein | Published July 24, 2020

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Hospital’s ‘Grandma’ Was Recalled From Vacation, Only to Get Sick

(Lacey Williams)

Lilly Tsosie

Age: 65Occupation: PhlebotomistPlace of Work: San Juan Regional Medical Center in Farmington, New MexicoDate of Death: June 17, 2020

Lilly Tsosie was known as the hospital vampire for her skill at drawing blood. “She was known by all of the nurses as the one who got the job done the first time,” said Lacey Williams, her eldest daughter.

People also called her Grandma. Tsosie, a Navajo, had celebrated 30 years at the center. A brick was dedicated in her honor in the Healing Garden.

She always wore a protective gown to guard against COVID-19. Before going home daily, she took two showers and changed clothes to protect her seven grandchildren.

In early May, she started two weeks’ vacation at home to avoid the virus. But on May 11, she was called in for the day and took blood on the COVID floor, Williams said, adding “we begged her not to go back in.” Within days, she felt sick.

Tsosie was hospitalized at San Juan from May 22 to June 2 before being airlifted to Lovelace Medical Center in Albuquerque.

“She will be deeply missed by her SJRMC family, the laboratory department specifically and by all who knew and loved her,” said San Juan spokesperson Laura Werbner.

The family rode in a 50-vehicle, 180-mile motorcade from Albuquerque to Farmington, where dozens of hospital staffers waved as it passed.

“I couldn’t stop crying,” Williams said.

— Eriech Tapia, University of Oklahoma | Published July 24, 2020

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Selfless Geriatrician Loved Hearing Patients’ Stories

(Max Escher)

Jeffrey Ethan Escher

Age: 72Occupation: GeriatricianPlace of Work: Providence Rest in the Bronx, New YorkDate of Death: April 26, 2020

Before Dr. Jeffrey Escher died, he sent his son Max pictures of personal protective equipment he wore while seeing his nursing home and rehabilitation center patients. The photos depicted surgical masks and a face shield, but Escher remained concerned.

“He would tell us that he had enough PPE, and he was worried about other staff who he didn’t know if they had enough,” Max said. “He was always concerned for others instead of himself.” (Escher’s employer, TeamHealth, declined to comment.)

Escher, who earned his medical degree at the Université Libre de Bruxelles in Belgium after studying at Columbia University in New York City, started showing COVID-19 symptoms in April. He stopped working and was tested. Escher, who’d been quarantined with his wife, Monique Brion, died before the results came back positive.

Escher’s obituary in The Scarsdale Inquirer mentions his membership in the Dixieland Jazz Band in his Westchester hometown. During the Jewish High Holy Days, he played the shofar at his local temple.

“His idea of being a doctor was not focusing on a specific part of the body but focusing on the patient in total … and listening to their stories,” Max said.

— Jessica Klein | Published July 21, 2020

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Spirited Drug and Alcohol Counselor Went the Extra Mile

(David Fierro)

Vivian Fierro

Age: 58Occupation: Therapist/group facilitatorPlace of Work: Impact Drug and Alcohol Treatment Center in Pasadena, CaliforniaDate of Death: April 27, 2020

Growing up in the barrios of East Los Angeles, Vivian Fierro wasn’t expected to succeed. “She raised the bar far beyond what [our parents] hoped for her,” said her younger brother, David.

Vivian’s drive resulted in her excelling first at basketball, then scholastically, earning a degree at East Los Angeles College. As a certified drug and alcohol counselor, she dedicated her career to helping people recovering from addiction and those in the LGBTQ community.

“If somebody was about to get evicted, she would maybe pay their rent,” David said. She traveled up and down the California coast, speaking at large 12-step conventions and small, out-of-the-way meetings.

Vivian was approaching 31 years sober when she died at home from COVID-19 after possibly contracting it at work. (Her workplace shut down to sanitize after employees and clients had tested positive, David said, and when Vivian went back, she developed symptoms. Impact did not respond to requests for comment.)

“Vivian was considered different,” David said, and taught others marginalized by their addictions or sexuality that being different was OK. “She just wanted to know how she could help you.”

— Jessica Klein | Published July 21, 2020

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With a Rough-Hewn Style, She Won Over Patients and Staff

(Allyse Gombas)

Sandra Hardy-Rogers

Age: 56Occupation: Medical technicianPlace of Work: Community Medical Center in Toms River, New JerseyDate of Death: May 1, 2020

Patients said it all the time: “That British lady is amazing.” According to colleagues, Sandra Hardy-Rogers was a whirlwind in the emergency department, caring for patients with a slightly rough-around-the-edges style that somehow made almost everyone smile.

“There was nobody as good as her,” said Allyse Gombas, a colleague. About 5 feet tall, Hardy-Rogers was “all spunk, all enthusiasm.”

Hardy-Rogers arrived in the United States as a young woman, working first as a nanny and then as a home health aide, then got a job at the hospital, eventually settling into an overnight shift in the emergency department.

Hardy-Rogers was devoted to family and loved traveling with relatives. She was thrilled every time she built a Lego set with her son, now 16. She put others’ needs ahead of her own.

In late March, she learned that a patient tested positive, according to local news reports. Back then, Gombas said, protocols were laxer, and the hospital wasn’t yet treating all emergency patients as presumptively positive. A spokesperson for the hospital did not respond to KHN’s inquiries.

Hardy-Rogers soon became critically ill, fighting for about a month in the hospital’s intensive care unit before her organs shut down.

— Maureen O’Hagan | Published July 17, 2020

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At 65, Nursing Became Her Second Act

(Jenny Winkler)

Karon Hoffman

Age: 69Occupation: Licensed practical nursePlace of Work: Alden Terrace of McHenry, IllinoisDate of Death: May 18, 2020

Karon Hoffman’s daughter Jenny Winkler paid for her first college class, to encourage her. That same year, Hoffman’s son, Karl, returned home from the Army and also wanted to take a course. Mother and son ended up in the same introductory computer class.

“She had the No. 1 grade in the class, and he had No. 2,” Winkler said.

Hoffman had previously worked as a 911 dispatcher, EMT and, most recently, a real estate appraiser. At 65, when most of her peers were thinking about retirement, she graduated from a local community college with high honors and an associate degree in arts. She took the nursing licensing exam and passed.

She never let others tell her what to do, said daughter Jessica Allen. Hoffman’s hobbies included canning dandelion jelly, gardening and going to garage sales with her grandchildren.

In January, Hoffman started her first nursing job at the Alden Terrace rehabilitation center, after taking a few years post-graduation to tend to both her husband’s health and her own. She needed the income to afford their medications that weren’t covered by Medicare, her family said. Her family believes she was infected in early April, shortly after she completed orientation training.

Her family said that the facility’s nurses were not provided personal protective equipment unless they were working on the designated COVID-19 floor, which Hoffman was not. Yet all staff used the same break rooms, Winkler said. Alden Terrace did not return repeated requests for comment.

— Theresa Gaffney, City University of New York | Published July 17, 2020

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‘Gregarious’ Mechanic Maintained Hospital’s Air Filter

(Stephanie Anderson)

James “Mike” Anderson

Age: 51Occupation: Maintenance mechanicPlace of Work: St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne, PennsylvaniaDate of Death: April 13, 2020

As he wheeled patients through hallways or responded to maintenance calls, James “Mike” Anderson was “gregarious,” said Mark Banchi, who volunteers with chaplains at the hospital.

Banchi, who taught English at Anderson’s high school, said even as a student, Anderson was “a personality larger than life.”

Anderson was a loving husband and father to his son, 5, and daughter, 9, with “immeasurable” pride in family.

He had a low-profile though critical job: changing air filters in patients’ rooms, including those treated for COVID-19.

In early April, Anderson came down with what he thought was a cold. On April 13, Anderson was rushed to the hospital, where he died of acute respiratory distress syndrome from COVID-19.

David Stern, a lawyer pursuing a workers’ compensation claim on behalf of Anderson’s family, said Anderson was exposed to contaminated air filters and spaces.

In an email, hospital spokesperson Christy McCabe wrote: “We are extremely saddened by his death. We are not able to provide additional information out of respect for his and his family’s privacy.”

“His loss to the hospital is real,” Banchi said. “Some people lift spirits, some people make you glad you came that day, and Mike was one of those people.”

— Melissa Bailey | Published July 14, 2020

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A Doctor Found ‘the Thing That Made Him Happy’

(Joseph Bongiorno Jr.)

Joseph Bongiorno Sr.

Age: 78Occupation: PsychiatristPlace of Work: Private practice in ChicagoDate of Death: April 14, 2020

Joseph Bongiorno worked for nearly a decade with Dr. James Sullivan at Saint Joseph Hospital in Chicago. Neither imagined they would meet again as doctor and patient in a pandemic.

The two had not seen each other since Bongiorno chose to focus exclusively on private practice toward the end of his career.

“He was a one-on-one type of person, you know, and I think that’s kind of why he decided to do what he did with the last years of his life,” Sullivan said. “He found the thing that made him happy.”

His daughter Madeleine said his work in health care took many forms.

He served as a U.S. Air Force Medical Service Corps officer providing psychiatric service to Vietnam War returnees at Eglin Air Force Base. In 1974, he started his private practice in Illinois and also provided services to the Archdiocese of Chicago.

Bongiorno was hospitalized in mid-March and died after being on a ventilator for over 20 days.

“I’ve probably got 30 or 40 emails from patients who found out, and they all pretty much say that he saved their life with his help and changed their lives,” his son Joseph Jr. said. “He never ever, ever planned on retiring.”

— Ayse Eldes, University of Michigan | Published July 14, 2020

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‘He Would Come Running in a Heartbeat if Something Happened’

(Beatrice Carrillo)

Emmanuel J. Carrillo

Age: 60Occupation: Licensed practical nursePlace of Work: Hackensack Meridian Health Prospect Heights Care Center in Hackensack, New JerseyDate of Death: April 21, 2020

Emmanuel Carrillo worked hard to support his wife and three children, sometimes working three to four jobs at a time.

He had been a mechanical engineer in his native Philippines and became a nurse after immigrating to the U.S. in 1988.

“We were very dependent on him,” said his daughter, Beatrice Carrillo. Earlier this year, when she injured her leg in an accident, her father immediately came to her aid, crutches in tow. “He would come running in a heartbeat if something happened,” she said. She described her father as devoted to his family and “lively and silly. Always making jokes,” she said.

Emmanuel Carrillo was only a few weeks into a new job when patients with symptoms of COVID-19 began showing up. Days after working a 72-hour shift, he developed a fever, sore throat and cough. Beatrice, who is also a nurse, said her father did not have adequate personal protective equipment. The care center did not respond to questions about protective gear.

Beatrice said her father, one of 10 siblings, longed to travel the world and spend more time with his family back in the Philippines. Beatrice, who is 5 months pregnant, said his last wish was to be a grandfather.

— Elena Johnson | Published July 14, 2020

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Psychiatric Nurse Planned to Host a Barbecue Once He Recovered

(The Chinwendu family)

Gabriel Chinwendu

Age: 56Occupation: Registered nursePlace of Work: Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of Washington, D.C.Date of Death: April 24, 2020

Gabriel Chinwendu’s family and friends remember him as a gentle man who was dedicated to his work as a psychiatric nurse.

“Love for one another was his mission, to care. That was why what happened, happened,” said his wife, Gloria Chinwendu. The couple, who had immigrated from Nigeria years ago, had four children together. “His love for his job and others led him to lose his life.”

Gloria said Gabriel was outfitted with personal protective equipment and always washed his hands after seeing patients he suspected of having COVID-19. But on April 17, he left work feeling tired. Two days later, he went to the emergency room.

Feeling better by the time his test came back positive, he even promised to throw a family barbecue after he recovered. He died a few days later.

— Sonya Swink, City University of New York | Published July 14, 2020

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Early Brush With Cancer Led Prankster Into Nursing

(The Darby family)

Denny Darby

Age: 31Occupation: Certified nursing assistantPlace of Work: Fulton Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing in Gloversville, New YorkDate of Death: May 20, 2020

Growing up, Denny Darby was a prankster who loved to watch World Wrestling Entertainment. At 14, he was diagnosed with cancer; he recovered, but his cousin Elizabeth Duplago said this early brush with illness influenced his decision to go into nursing.

As a nursing assistant at a nursing home, Darby cared for his patients at their most vulnerable: He brushed their teeth, and bathed and clothed them.

Duplago described him as sensitive, caring and selfless. “He would spend his money and buy [friends] a drink and go without a drink for himself,” she said.

Darby continued working even as COVID-19 tore through the nursing home where he worked — by May, some 130 residents and staff members had become infected. He became sick in early May and died on May 20.

Darby’s family believes he contracted the virus at work, and Duplago said Darby’s colleagues told her the nursing home did not have adequate PPE at the outset of the pandemic. A spokesperson for Centers Health Care, which owns the Fulton Center, denied that the center experienced PPE shortages.

Duplago said she’s looking into ways to help families facing pediatric cancer, in Darby’s name.

— Kelsie Sandoval, City University of New York | Published July 14, 2020

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Friends Say Neonatal Nurse Was a Baby Whisperer

(Lowelia Avellana)

Susan Sisgundo

Age: 50Occupation: Neonatal ICU nursePlace of Work: Bellevue Hospital in New York CityDate of Death: April 8, 2020

With eight siblings, Susan Sisgundo had to fight to stand out, whether it was academics or a new dance move, friend Lowelia Avellana said.

The two met in grade school in the Philippines. Avellana moved to New York City; her friend followed. They studied nursing and lived in Queens, 10 minutes from each other.

Sisgundo worked in one of the country’s busiest hospitals, which was beset by COVID-19 patients. A hospital spokesperson said its employees had appropriate personal protective equipment.

In the NICU, Sisgundo was a baby whisperer, adept at coaxing the fussiest newborn to sleep.

“She wanted to have babies,” Avellana said, “but she wasn’t lucky to find a good guy.”

In March, Sisgundo started feeling sick. Struggling to breathe, she was taken to Queens Hospital, where Avellana works. The hospital was overwhelmed by COVID-19 patients, and Avellana couldn’t reach Sisgundo before she was intubated. “It was crazy, crazy,” Avellana recalled, her voice trailing off.

She visited Sisgundo every day until her death.

The friends were supposed to travel to the Philippines to celebrate their birthdays. Now, Avellana is going to transport her best friend home.

— Kathleen Horan | Published July 14, 2020

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RN Nourished Souls as Well as Bodies

(The Abellera family and the Angelus Funeral Home)

Milagros D. Abellera

Age: 65Occupation: Registered nursePlace of Work: Baptist Medical Center and Kindred Hospital in San AntonioDate of Death: May 13, 2020

Milagros Abellera cooked Philippine feasts for her husband, Roberto, six children and grandchildren. Sometimes they’d host nearly 100 people. No one ever left hungry.

A devout Catholic, Milagros also nourished souls wherever she went. “She would always bring people back to their faith,” said daughter Kristine Abellera.

Milagros earned her degree in the Philippines and worked as a nurse for 46 years. She landed in Texas in the early ’90s.

“She was a mother hen to our young nurses,” said Kyle Sinclair, CEO of Kindred Hospital San Antonio Central.

She would speak up with other nurses and doctors if she felt there was a better way to treat patients, Kristine said.

Milagros’ low-grade fever escalated in late March. She got tested for COVID-19 and went into home isolation once additional symptoms came on, but finally went to the hospital.

“She wanted to work it off like she does everything else,” Kristine said.

On the day of her death, an American flag was flown in her honor at the Texas Capitol. It was given to her family.

— Eriech Tapia, University of Oklahoma | Published July 10, 2020

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22-Year-Old EMT Treated Everyone Like Family

(Laura and Paul Granger)

John Paul Granger

Age: 22Occupation: Emergency medical technicianPlace of Work: Vital Care EMS in Greenville, South CarolinaDate of Death: May 26, 2020

John Paul Granger was used to working on the front lines. He aided federal hurricane disaster relief efforts in Texas and Florida. John Paul “was dedicated … to the profession of being a first responder,” Vital Care wrote in a statement published by the Greenville News.

JP, as he was also known, started washing ambulance trucks after high school and worked his way up to driver and EMT. He enjoyed boating, flying lessons and throwing the ball with his rescue dog, Shadow. He aspired to be a chef.

“He was one of the happiest people I’d ever met,” said Patrick Hahne, a friend and former Vital Care driver. No matter your race, sexual orientation or religious belief, “he would treat you like a brother or sister.”

John Paul was the only child of Laura and Paul Granger, who said he had “a smile that would light up any room.”

One of South Carolina’s youngest COVID victims, he died after a month in the hospital, his mother by his side.

Hahne said he and JP “frequently expressed how inadequate the PPE and precautions” were. Initially, he added, the only protection they typically had when transporting patients to dialysis clinics, for example, was surgical masks. Hahne said they started wearing N95 masks a few days before JP fell ill.

Vital Care did not respond to requests for comment.

— Katja Ridderbusch | Published July 10, 2020

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Nurse’s Assistant Was a Perfectionist Who Doted on Patients

(Mike Graveline)

Elva Graveline

Age: 52Occupation: Certified nursing assistantPlace of Work: Lawrence + Memorial Hospital in New London, ConnecticutDate of Death: May 19, 2020

Elva Graveline took small, graceful steps down the hospital corridors.

“You could see her smile coming,” said Connie Fields, her local union president.

A perfectionist at work, Elva arrived over an hour early for her 6:45 a.m. shift, according to her husband, Mike Graveline. She doted on her patients with shampoo and razors that she brought from home.

“She just wanted them smelling good,” Mike said.

Elva, born in Texas to Mexican American parents, adored her two daughters and three granddaughters. The third was born in April, but she never got to hold the baby because she was exposed to COVID-19 at work. Elva worked on a COVID floor, caring for as many as 12 patients a day, Mike said.

Fields said she believes Elva got sick from reusing protective gear: In March, Elva and others wore the same N95 respirator masks for two weeks, Fields said, though by early May they had new N95s each day.

Hospital spokesperson Fiona Phelan replied that “we value and respect [staff members] too much to not provide the protective gear needed in this battle.”

Elva tested positive for COVID-19 on May 12 and died a week later of cardiac arrest.

“This should never have happened,” Mike recalled telling his wife. “I just wish this was me.”

— Melissa Bailey | Published July 10, 2020

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ICU Nurse Who Treated the First U.S. COVID Cases Dies of the Virus

(Kathy Julian)

Kurt Julian

Age: 63Occupation: Intensive care nursePlace of Work: EvergreenHealth Medical Center in Kirkland, WashingtonDate of Death: May 29, 2020

After the first U.S. surge of COVID-19 patients slammed his hospital in late February, Kurt Julian tended to its victims for weeks.

Then after three nights of caring for a COVID patient, Julian contracted the coronavirus.

“It was almost surreal, trying to think about this crazy new infection,” said his wife, Kathy Julian, an ICU nurse at a Seattle hospital. Her husband had ample protective gear and was careful in its use. Hospital officials said they were grateful for the compassionate care Julian provided.

When his symptoms began, Julian’s biggest concern was infecting his family, including four children ages 12 to 17.

In April, Julian was taken by ambulance to his own ICU and, later, placed on a ventilator by colleagues. In May, doctors at a trauma center used ECMO — extracorporeal membrane oxygenation — in a last-ditch effort to save him.

Kathy and their oldest son were present as nurses withdrew life support. The world lost a diligent nurse as well as a witty, creative soul who loved working with wood and stained glass at the family’s rural 5-acre property.

“I want people to get that this is real,” Kathy said. “Real people are dying.”

— JoNel Aleccia, Kaiser Health News | Published July 10, 2020

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‘Force of Nature’ Wanted to Reform Social Work

(The Roncskevitz family)

Sarah Roncskevitz

Age: 32Occupation: Medical social workerPlace of Work: Emergency Department, Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Medical Center in San FranciscoDate of Death: May 30, 2020

Sarah Roncskevitz was larger than life, a vibrant, kind, generous and sometimes vexing bundle of superlatives: “a pillar of strength,” “a force of nature,” “a warrior mom,” friends wrote on Facebook.

“She exuded so much light,” said G. Allen Ratliff, her social work teacher at the University of California-Berkeley. In class, she stood out as always prepared, seated up front and eager to dig into issues.

She also had her troubles in the past, including addiction and domestic violence. That experience, Ratliff said, was the backbone of her work. “She had been very frustrated with social workers in her life,” he said. She was drawn to the profession, in a sense, to right those wrongs.

Kaiser San Francisco’s chaotic Emergency Department was exactly where she wanted to be. Yet she became increasingly concerned the hospital was unprepared for the pandemic. Her mom, Tami Leal-Roncskevitz, said in an email that Sarah was scolded in March for wearing a surgical mask, accused of contributing to the mask shortage and making patients fearful.

In an emailed statement, a Kaiser spokesperson wrote that the hospital was “devastated by [her] tragic death,” adding that the hospital followed all CDC precautions and that her complaint about mask-wearing “does not accurately reflect our policy.”

She became ill in mid-May but tested negative. On May 26, she collapsed at home. Hospitalized, she retested as positive and never regained consciousness.

— Maureen O’Hagan | Published July 10, 2020

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ICU Nurse Found His Passion Caring for Children, Burn Patients

(Melvin Tam)

J. Aleksandr Vollmann

Age: 57Occupation: ICU nurse, pediatric and burn unitsPlace of Work: Harborview Medical Center in SeattleDate of Death: May 19, 2020

J. Aleksandr Vollmann, known as Aleks to friends and family, honed his caregiving skills as an Army medic and his discipline as an honor guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

But the 57-year-old intensive care nurse in Seattle found his true passion at the bedsides of sick children and burn patients.

“He would tell me he would never leave here,” said Melvin Tam, who worked with Vollmann for more than a decade. “He found a home.”

In April, Vollmann contracted COVID-19, possibly from a patient. He was hospitalized twice with the virus and recovered. He was ready to return to work when he collapsed during an errand at Costco, days before his 58th birthday. He died of a probable heart attack complicated by blood clots related to COVID-19, records show.

“The COVID compromised him,” said his older sister, Jackie Martin. “People that recover, they don’t recover completely, and he didn’t.”

More than 100 people attended Vollmann’s memorial service at the hospital. He was remembered as a talented chef, the devoted owner of two cats, Azi and Kaali — and an exceptional nurse. Hospital officials issued a statement mourning his loss.

“There was so much love,” Martin said. “That really was his family.”

— JoNel Aleccia, Kaiser Health News | Published July 10, 2020

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Nursing Aide Who Kept to Himself ‘Was Just Work, Work, Work’

(Cecilia Bautista)

Nestor Bautista

Age: 62Occupation: Nursing aidePlace of Work: Clara Maass Medical Center in Belleville, New JerseyDate of Death: April 15, 2020

Nestor Bautista came from a family of quiet men. He was quiet, too, said Cecilia Bautista, one of his four siblings.

Cecilia and Nestor came to the U.S. from the Philippines in the 1980s. Cecilia became a nurse. Nestor, who had studied engineering, became a nursing aide.

Nestor lived with Cecilia’s family and worked at the same hospital for 24 years, she said. Nestor, who had diabetes, cooked for himself and “preferred to do things alone.”

He picked up extra shifts on his days off and didn’t need to be told what to do, Cecilia said. “He was just work, work, work.”

Eight days after he was hospitalized with COVID-19, Cecilia spoke to Nestor by phone. He said he felt OK. The next day, he was transferred to intensive care, where he died of cardiac arrest.

A nurse with whom Nestor worked died the same day of COVID-19 complications. A hospital spokesperson declined to comment on their deaths, citing privacy.

Cecilia has placed Nestor’s ashes in an urn in his bedroom. She plans to take the ashes to the Philippines, where families visit graveyards every Nov. 1, and put them next to an older brother’s.

Nestor had few friends, she said, but this way, “if someone will visit my other brother, someone will visit Nestor as well.”

— Melissa Bailey | Published July 7, 2020

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Haitian Immigrant’s 4 Children Followed Her Into Health Care Field

(Paul da Costa)

Monemise Romelus

Age: 61Occupation: Nursing aidePlace of Work: New Jersey Veterans Memorial Home at Menlo Park in Edison, New JerseyDate of Death: May 11, 2020

Each day for lunch, Monemise Romelus and her fellow Haitian co-workers would heat up bowl after bowl of traditional cuisine: fried turkey, rice and peas, griot. They shared with all, said Shirley Lewis, her union president.

Romelus, who worked on a floor with COVID patients, was a quiet woman with many friends, Lewis said. Romelus beamed when talking about her four children, all of whom work in health care.

When the pandemic began, workers initially were told not to wear masks so they wouldn’t scare patients, said Paul da Costa, a lawyer representing Romelus’ family. She worked without adequate protective gear, contracted COVID-19 and died, he said.

More than 100 workers at the veterans home have tested positive for COVID-19; 62 residents have died, state data shows. Facility spokesperson Kryn Westhoven declined to comment on Romelus’ death but said workers “are directed to wear PPE in accordance with CDC guidelines.”

Management never acknowledged Romelus’ death, Lewis said. When the police killing of George Floyd ignited protests nationwide, staffers and supervisors gathered for eight minutes of silence. Lewis said she insisted they hold a moment of silence for Romelus, too.

— Melissa Bailey | Published July 7, 2020

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A Nurse From Cameroon Who Liked to Sing and Dance

Quen Agbor Ako

Age: 53Occupation: Registered nursePlace of Work: FutureCare Old Court nursing home in Randallstown, MarylandDate of Death: April 10, 2020

Quen Ako was known to wear stylish, bright clothing and break out in song and dance. Posting to an online memorial, friends, family and co-workers described a lively, compassionate woman.

“My memory of you is that of a warm person, one that will break out in songs of joy,” one friend wrote. Another described laughing at an inside joke with Ako just weeks before her death. “Did I for one second think that I would never hear that resounding, hearty laughter again?”

Born in Cameroon, Ako worked as a guidance counselor and teacher before coming to the U.S., where she earned her nursing degree. She worked for a chain of nursing homes and rehabilitation centers that saw massive COVID-19 outbreaks.

Ako’s family declined to be interviewed for this article but told a local news station that she had died of COVID-19. The Guardian independently verified Ako’s cause of death with one of her former co-workers. Ako’s employer did not respond to requests for comment about her death.

— Anna Jean Kaiser, The Guardian | Published June 30, 2020

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Firefighter Who Lit Up Others’ Lives

(Richard Whitehead)

Mario Araujo

Age: 49Occupation: Firefighter and emergency medical technicianPlace of Work: Chicago Fire Department Truck Company 25Date of Death: April 7, 2020

Despite fighting fires and treating the injured for nearly 20 years, Mario Araujo remained goofy and light.

He had an uncanny ability to pry open roofs and pop open doors, said Richard Whitehead, a fellow firefighter. But he also loved playing virtual slot machines and cracking jokes.

“He was always kidding around. You could never take him serious,” Whitehead said. “But when it came time to go to work, he was just always ready to go.”

He was the first Chicago firefighter to die from the coronavirus, the department confirmed. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot honored him on Twitter: “Mario selflessly dedicated his life to protecting our communities.”

Araujo approached his relationship with his girlfriend, Rosa Castillo, 48, and her son, Leo, 7, with the same zeal. He was attentive, picking up Leo from school and giving him a tablet computer so they could speak when he traveled.

“He taught my son a lot, even if they didn’t share the same blood,” Castillo said.

Castillo told Leo that God took Araujo to ease his suffering. She said her child believes he is an angel: “He hugs me and says, ‘Mom, I can feel Daddy with us.’”

— Carmen Heredia Rodriguez, Kaiser Health News | Published June 30, 2020

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Ghanaian Nurse Made ‘a Deep Impact Across the Planet’

(Kojoh Atta)

Bernard Atta

Age: 61Occupation: Registered nursePlace of Work: Correctional Reception Center in Orient, OhioDate of Death: May 17, 2020

In December 2019, Kojoh Atta returned to his father’s hometown in Offinso, Ghana. Kojoh arrived alone, but everybody knew his father, Bernard Atta.

As a nurse in Ohio’s prison system, Bernard worked overtime so he could afford to ship “drums of clothes” across the Atlantic to the Takoradi port. Inside were sneakers, sandals and Ralph Lauren polos for cousins. “Always with stripes,” Kojoh said, “so the boys knew they were special.”

The regard for his father made Kojoh realize “there are countless unsung heroes making a deep impact across the planet.”

In New York last summer, the two visited the United Nations to pay respects to a portrait of their hero, Kofi Annan, a former U.N. secretary-general from Ghana. They cried. “Look at this man, and look at us,” Bernard told his son. “We came from nothing, but we are here. We are making it.”

As COVID-19 ravaged Ohio, Kojoh urged his father to leave work, worried about inadequate protective gear. Bernard refused, citing “his duty,” Kojoh said. “PPE was, and continues to be available to staff,” a prison spokesperson said.

Bernard showed symptoms and tested positive for COVID-19, but he remained home, fearing the hospital bills. Awakened by a flurry of WhatsApp messages, Kojoh learned his father died, leaving behind his wife, three other children and grandchildren.

“He never could live for himself,” Kojoh said, “but he’s finally on vacation, in eternal paradise.”

— Eli Cahan | Published June 30, 2020

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On Eve of Her Retirement, Nurse Took Ill

(Kristin Carbone)

Barbara Birchenough

Age: 65Occupation: Registered nursePlace of Work: Clara Maass Medical Center in Belleville, New JerseyDate of Death: April 15, 2020

Barbara Birchenough consistently mailed cards to her family and friends, for birthdays, holidays or just as a pleasant surprise. Her youngest son, Matthew Birchenough, said it reflected her personality: quiet, thoughtful and kind.

Birchenough began training as a nurse right after high school and worked for 46 years. Her retirement was planned for April 4, with a big party to follow.

On March 24, she came home from work and told Matthew that four floors of the hospital had been taken over with COVID patients.

The next day, she began to cough. In text messages with her oldest daughter that morning, she conveyed that protective gear was lacking at the hospital. “The ICU nurses were making gowns out of garbage bags,” Barbara texted. “Dad is going to pick up large garbage bags for me just in case.”

When Birchenough returned to the hospital, though, it was as a patient. Her eldest daughter, Kristin Carbone, said she tested positive for COVID shortly before she died.

A Clara Maass spokesperson said the hospital has been compliant with state and CDC guidelines for protective gear.

— Christina Jewett, Kaiser Health News | Published June 30, 2020

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First COVID Casualty Among Staff at His Hospital, Nurse ‘Had No Enemies’

Patrick cain and his wife, Kate (Kelly Indish)

Patrick Cain

Age: 52Occupation: Registered nursePlace of Work: McLaren Flint Hospital in Flint, MichiganDate of Death: April 4, 2020

Patrick Cain was a dedicated nurse, always “close to his patients,” said Teresa Ciesielski, a nurse and former colleague. “The guy had no enemies.”

Cain was from Canada — a heritage he was especially proud of, Ciesielski recalled. He met his wife, Kate, in 1994, when they both worked in Texas. They had a son.

“He was an amazing father,” Ciesiekski said. “He was always talking about his kid.”

Cain’s ICU work meant caring for patients awaiting COVID test results. Some days, he worked outside the room where “suspected COVID” patients were being treated. The hospital hadn’t provided protective gear, despite his requests, according to Kelly Indish, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 875, his union.

On March 26, he texted Indish. He was worried he had been exposed to the virus the week before, and he hadn’t had a mask. “McLaren screwed us,” he wrote.

A hospital spokesperson said employees received appropriate gear based on government guidelines. But those rules didn’t mandate N95s — known to block viruses — for workers who, like Cain, were providing care but weren’t performing aerosolizing treatments, which can release virus particles into the air.

COVID-19 came with a fever, loss of appetite, dry cough, nausea. Cain was the hospital’s first employee known to die of the illness.

— Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News | Published June 30, 2020

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Grateful Immigrant Who Loved Thanksgiving Catered to Chinese Community

(The Hsu family)

Alex Hsu

Age: 67Occupation: Internal medicine physicianPlace of Work: Hsu & Loy Medical Group in Margate, FloridaDate of Death: March 24, 2020

Alex Hsu loved Thanksgiving.

Sitting down with his family for the holiday feast, Hsu always spoke for at least 10 minutes about how grateful he was to be in America. Hsu “didn’t really come from much,” said Zach Hsu, his son.

Hsu fled Communist China, first immigrating to Hong Kong and then to Hawaii, where he attended medical school. He served his residency in Kentucky and, eventually, landed in Broward County, Florida, where he practiced for decades.

As one of the few Chinese-speaking internal medicine doctors in the area, Hsu would see “a crazy amount of patients, and he never complained about it,” Zach said. As Hsu aged, he turned to Buddhism and meditation and wrote loving notes to his children as they left for college.

It is not clear how Hsu contracted COVID-19. He had traveled to New York weeks before falling ill but also was seeing patients who could have been carrying the virus.

Hsu worked in a private practice with privileges at Northwest Medical Center. His staff did not return requests for comment. Hsu died at the same hospital where he had cared for patients.

— Sarah Jane Tribble, Kaiser Health News | Published June 30, 2020

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Hospital Supply Manager Lacked Protective Gear for Himself

(Bill Sohmer)

Roger Liddell

Age: 64Occupation: Supply managerPlace of Work: McLaren Flint hospital in Flint, MichiganDate of Death: April 10, 2020

Roger Liddell was a family man. One of nine siblings, he frequently visited his extended family back in Mississippi. He was involved in his church and loved cooking, Westerns and the Chicago Bears.

After high school, Liddell joined the Marine Corps. Upon finishing his service, he moved to Chicago, working for the U.S. Postal Service. Finally, he settled down in Michigan, working at McLaren Flint for almost 20 years.

His job took him all over the hospital. And as COVID cases climbed, he was worried.

Liddell requested protective gear from his hospital, said Bill Sohmer, president of AFSCME Local 2650, which represents non-technical employees at the hospital. Since he didn’t treat patients, he was denied — even though his work took him to floors with COVID-positive patients.

In an email, a hospital spokesperson said McLaren Flint had followed government guidelines to ensure employees received sufficient protective gear.

On March 30, Liddell posted to Facebook: He had worked the previous week in the ICU and critical care unit, without PPE. “Pray for me God is still in control,” he wrote.

Liddell tested positive for COVID-19. He was put on a ventilator but died, leaving behind his wife, four children, two stepchildren and 11 grandchildren.

— Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News | Published June 30, 2020

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A Doctor and a Poet Who ‘Wasn’t Done’

(Adam Oglesbee)

John Robert Oglesbee

Age: 80Occupation: Family physicianPlace of Work: CCOM Medical Group Cardiology Clinic in Muskogee, OklahomaDate of Death: April 26, 2020

A bushel of corn or meat from the family cow was how some of John Oglesbee’s clients paid him. No matter, he always put his clients first.

“He loved small-town Oklahoma,” said grandson Adam Oglesbee.

For nearly 30 years, John Oglesbee had his clinic outside of Ada until the mid-90s, when he began fill-in work at rural emergency rooms for a time before ending up in his hometown.

An avid reader of books on every topic, he would always return to the Bible. He was a churchgoer and deacon for many years, often guest-preaching.

Wherever he went, Oglesbee wrote poems, whether on a napkin or the back of an envelope, stuffing them in books within his vast home library.

He saw patients until he contracted COVID-19. On March 19, he went into home isolation. He tested positive March 23.

“He told me when I last saw him at his home through the window, ‘Dammit, I wasn’t done,’” Adam said. “He was a doctor until the day he died.”

Multiple attempts to reach CCOM Medical Group for comment went unanswered.

— Eriech Tapia, University of Oklahoma | Published June 30, 2020

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Big-Hearted Nurse Feared for the Safety of Those Who Cared for Her

(Lori Rodriguez)

Sandra Oldfield

Age: 53Occupation: Registered nursePlace of Work: Kaiser Permanente Fresno Medical Center in Fresno, CaliforniaDate of Death: May 25, 2020

Sandra Oldfield had a big heart and couldn’t say no to anyone, her sister Lori Rodriguez said. She had no children of her own but loved to spoil and care for her nieces and nephews.

She was a nurse who would listen to others’ problems. And she could amplify those concerns for management without losing her composure, Rodriguez said.

Oldfield had concerns of her own in mid-March while caring for critically ill patients in the telemetry unit. She was upset that she was given a surgical mask — not nearly as protective as an N95 respirator — to treat patients as COVID-19 was spreading.

Her concern was on point: She cared for a patient whose initial symptoms didn’t meet the well-known COVID profile, but who tested positive for the virus.

“I feel if she had an N95, she would be here today,” Rodriguez said. “I don’t want to see anyone else lose their life like my sister did.”

Kaiser Fresno said it has followed state and federal guidelines on protective gear. (KHN is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.)

Rodriguez said her sister resisted going to the hospital as her symptoms worsened, reluctant to expose paramedics or hospital staffers to the virus. When Oldfield agreed that an ambulance should be called, she wanted the paramedics to be advised to take every precaution.

— Christina Jewett, Kaiser Health News | Published June 30, 2020

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The ‘Life of the Party’ Who Bonded With Patients

(Christina Ravanes)

John Abruzzo

Age: 62Occupation: Registered nursePlace of Work: Huntington Hospital in Huntington, New YorkDate of Death: April 2, 2020

Long Island is where John Abruzzo was born, raised, worked and died. The second of 14 children, he was the “life of the party,” said his daughter, Christina Ravanes. He loved poker and fishing. He had a son as well, and three grandchildren.

Abruzzo developed strong friendships with patients, said Susan Knoepffler, the hospital’s chief nursing officer. “He had a winning smile. He was kind of a teddy bear,” she said.

He tested positive for COVID-19 in late March and died five days later. “I went from seeing my dad at a wedding,” Ravanes said, “to the next time I see him, it’s ashes.”

John’s wife, Mary Abruzzo, died eight days later, on her birthday, Ravanes said, likely from complications related to Type 1 diabetes (she had not been exposed to John when he was infected).

As of June 18, no other nurses at Huntington hospital had died of COVID-19, Knoepffler said, adding that the facility was well prepared and never ran out of supplies. What’s missing, she said, is Abruzzo.

— James Faris, James Madison University | Published June 26, 2020

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A Nurse and Pastor Who Tended to Bodies and Souls

(The Boles family)

Dorothy Boles

Age: 65Occupation: Licensed practical nursePlace of Work: Greenwood Leflore Hospital in Greenwood, MississippiDate of Death: April 3, 2020

Dorothy Boles had two callings: one as a healer and the other as an ordained minister.

“Mama Boles,” as she was known, was a counselor and caretaker, said longtime friend and colleague Glory Boyd. Boles mentored aspiring ministers at First Chosen Tabernacle Church and welcomed recovering patients into her home.

“She went over, above and beyond,” said Boyd, the hospital’s chief nursing officer. “She cared for other people before she cared for herself.”

When patients leaving the hospital didn’t have the means to recover on their own, Boles opened her home to them, her son Marcus Banks told a local newspaper. Most stayed a few days. One young man stayed five years.

“Once she nursed him back to health, he just hung around,” Banks told the paper. “She just felt that nobody could take care of him like she could.”

Boles was admitted March 22 to the hospital where she had worked for 42 years. She was among the first four people to die of COVID-19 in Leflore County.

The hospital renamed the nurses’ station in her memory.

— Michaela Gibson Morris | Published June 26, 2020

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Pediatric Nurse Wore ‘Minions’ Scrubs and Connected With Children

(Carlos Dominguez)

Karla Dominguez

Age: 33Occupation: Registered nursePlace of Work: Providence Children’s Hospital in El Paso, TexasDate of Death: April 19, 2020

Karla Dominguez’s medical “practicing” began at a young age, with a doctor’s bag she got one Christmas. “Every time I came home, she’d say, ‘Let me listen to your heart; let me see how you’re doing,’” recalled her father, Carlos Dominguez.

She dreamed of becoming a pediatric neurosurgeon. Hurdles getting into medical school dampened her spirits. Then she pursued nursing, a field in which she blossomed.

“She was so full of joy, so happy with her work,” said Dominguez, a doctor. She wore scrubs with cartoon Minions and managed to connect with even the most challenging patients, her father said. A few years into her nursing career, she considered reapplying to medical school, but ultimately decided to stick with nursing because it allowed for more interaction with patients.

In early April, she began experiencing excruciating headaches — symptoms that have since been associated with COVID-19. She visited urgent care and the emergency room and was twice denied a coronavirus test. She was eventually hospitalized. Tests revealed she had the virus and CT scans showed brain hemorrhaging.

Dominguez doesn’t know how his daughter contracted the virus but suspects she may have contracted it at work. Providence did not respond to a request for comment.

— Maureen O’Hagan | Published June 26, 2020

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Passionate EMT and Volunteer Firefighter Was ‘Constantly on Call’

(Shana Konek)

Jeremy Emerich

Age: 40Occupation: Emergency medical technicianPlace of Work: Lehigh Valley Health Network MedEvac in Center Valley, PennsylvaniaDate of Death: May 21, 2020

Jeremy Emerich and his girlfriend, Shana Konek, made a pact: Home is home. Work is work.

They set aside time to do things they loved, like watching “The Big Bang Theory” or walking their two beagle-mix puppies. “Unless we scheduled it in, it wasn’t happening,” Konek said.

An Army veteran who served in Iraq, Emerich “was passionate and loved a challenge,” Konek said. When he wasn’t taking emergency shifts, he volunteered for the Exeter Township Fire Department. “He was constantly on call, always lending a helping hand,” said Konek, an emergency medical services dispatcher.

If families of patients were in shock, he’d comfort them — sometimes in Spanish, to his colleagues’ surprise. Emerich worked long shifts caring for COVID-19 patients across the Lehigh Valley, for which he was equipped with adequate protective gear, Konek said. His employer could not be reached for comment.

On April 25, Emerich’s appetite began to wane and he complained of “a little fever.” Konek took his temperature: 104 degrees. A week later, he was in the ICU.

On May 8, Emerich told Konek he was signing some paperwork and would call her back.

“I never got that call,” Konek said.

— Eli Cahan | Published June 26, 2020

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He Bridged Cultures With Cooking and Camaraderie

(Diana Ese Odighizuwa)

Paul Odighizuwa

Age: 61Occupation: Food services coordinatorPlace of Work: Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) in Portland, OregonDate of Death: May 12, 2020

When Paul Odighizuwa left Nigeria in 1987, he enrolled at Portland State University to study visual arts and began a decades-long career at OHSU, a large teaching hospital. He became a pillar of the area’s close-knit Nigerian community.

“Paul was such a go-to guy,” said Ezekiel Ette, a friend. “If you needed something done, Paul would do it, and do it graciously.”

As a student, he helped paint a prominent mural depicting African and African American heroes — it stood for decades in Portland’s King neighborhood.

Odighizuwa, who worked in the hospital’s food services department, cooked traditional Nigerian dishes at home — as well as American-style pancakes with “crispy edges,” his daughter, Diana, said.

In mid-March, his union complained that management in Odighizuwa’s department was not allowing proper social distancing. Eleven people in the department became ill, and Odighizuwa died.

OHSU did not respond to a request for comment.

— Maureen O’Hagan | Published June 26, 2020

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She Answered a Calling and Helped Fellow Native Americans

(Charmayne Bedonie)

Barbara Bedonie

Age: 56Occupation: Certified medication aidePlace of Work: Cedar Ridge Inn in Farmington, New MexicoDate of Death: May 16, 2020

Barbara Bedonie was happily raising three children when she realized she wanted to do more. She enrolled to become a certified nursing assistant, which turned out to be a calling.

“She was truly happy working,” her daughter Charmayne Bedonie said. “I’ve been hearing so many stories from families she’s helped.”

For 17 years, Barbara worked at a nursing home and received awards for perfect attendance. Management admired her work ethic enough to pay for her to become a certified medication aide. She was Navajo and could speak to residents at the home in their Indigenous tongue.

“I know she helped a lot of people just by speaking the language,” Charmayne said.

The home had reported a number of COVID cases. Bedonie tested negative for the virus repeatedly, but, overwhelmed by fatigue, she knew something was wrong. She was hospitalized and finally a test confirmed she had the coronavirus, Charmayne said.

Charmayne expressed praise for the hospital and the nursing home. Her employer did not respond to questions about protective gear and said only, “Cedar Ridge Inn misses our beloved colleague very much.”

Charmayne said families have been sharing stories about her mother. “They say she was a beautiful soul, inside and out,” she said.

— Maureen O’Hagan | Published June 23, 2020

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Travel Nurse Was ‘a Country Boy at Heart’

Denny Gilliam and his wife, Amanda Marr Gilliam (Amanda Marr Gilliam)

Denny Gilliam

Age: 53Occupation: Travel nursePlace of Work: NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital in Brooklyn, New York, via TrustaffDate of Death: May 7, 2020

Amanda Marr Gilliam was on a cigarette break when Denny Gilliam threw that first glance. “Those blue eyes caught me,” she said. “The very next day, we started dating.”

Gilliam treasured family time, like movie nights, when the kids would pile into the couple’s king-size bed with chips and French onion dip.

“A country boy at heart,” Gilliam loved the outdoors, Amanda said. He took the family hunting for ginseng, digging for frogs and camping throughout the Appalachian Mountains near their home in Pelham, Tennessee. He and Amanda liked to fish in Lake Chickamauga for crappie and bluegill.

Gilliam was a committed nurse — it was his second career, after serving in the military. In April, when he learned New York hospitals were short-staffed in the pandemic, he felt obliged to serve.

In early May, when Amanda didn’t hear from him for “what felt like eternity,” she called 35 hotels near the hospital before finding where he’d checked in. A private investigator confirmed: He had died days earlier of COVID-19.

“My worst fear came true,” Amanda said.

— Eli Cahan | Published June 23, 2020

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‘He Explored Life Without Restrictions’

(Monique Bertolotti)

Gianmarco Bertolotti

Age: 42Occupation: MasonPlace of Work: Lenox Hill Hospital in New York CityDate of Death: April 22, 2020

Decades ago, two girls asked Gianmarco Bertolotti to the senior prom. Even as a teenager, Bertolotti was “such a sweet soul,” said Monique Bertolotti, his sister. Instead of rejecting either one, he skipped prom.

As a child visiting grandparents in Rapallo, Italy, Bertolotti would invariably return from town with “focaccia, espresso and stories of the friends he’d made.” As an adult, the man known as “G-Funk” had “a special way about him,” Monique said, “forg[ing] a lasting bond with everyone he met.”

An avid traveler, he’d visited New Orleans and Japan in recent years. “He explored life without restrictions,” Monique said.

A mason, Bertolotti took the subway from his home in Queens every morning to help repair the hospital’s ceilings, floors, soap dispensers and sharps collectors. But on April 13, he called his sister because he was coughing up blood after carrying a case of seltzer up three flights of stairs.

The next morning, he went to the emergency room. A week later, he was dead. “Protecting our employees … has been our priority from day one,” the hospital said in a statement.

— Eli Cahan | Published June 19, 2020

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An Unflappable Nurse Who Loved Playing Tour Guide

(Michelle Helminski)

Edwin Montanano

Age: 73Occupation: Registered nursePlace of Work: Wellpath at Hudson County Correctional Center in Kearny, New JerseyDate of Death: April 5, 2020

Edwin Montanano went to the U.S. Open every year. He loved Broadway shows, especially “Miss Saigon,” but also “Les Misérables,” “The Phantom of the Opera” and “Cats.” He liked candy — Symphony bars and M&M’s. And he and his wife, Annabella, relished hosting guests.

“My parents always had an open-door policy, and [growing up] it was always a very busy house,” said Michelle Helminski, his daughter. “When relatives or friends would come to visit, my dad would take them to New York — he was an expert tour guide.”

In more recent years, his four young grandchildren became a focal point in his life.

Montanano, who studied nursing in his native Philippines, worked at St. Michael’s Medical Center in New Jersey for 30 years alongside Annabella; Michelle and her brother, Matthew, were born at the hospital. After retiring, Edwin returned to work as a nurse at a nearby prison.

Helminski said she does not know whether her father contracted the virus at work, but as of May, at least three other workers at the prison had died of COVID-19. A representative from Wellpath, Montanano’s employer, wrote that, “Our clinical personnel have ongoing access to masks, gowns, and other PPE, as well as the training to use it effectively.”

Montanano developed COVID-19 symptoms in late March and died at St. Michael’s.

— Danielle Renwick, The Guardian | Published June 19, 2020

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A Former Marine Whose Altruism Shined in the Operating Room

(Valerie Alford)

Jerry Alford

Age: 60Occupation: Licensed practical nursePlace of Work: DCH Regional Medical Center in Tuscaloosa, AlabamaDate of Death: April 22, 2020

Jerry Alford brought the same meticulous care to nursing he’d learned as a reconnaissance Marine. He was a stickler for maintaining a sterile workspace and never passed on the chance to lighten a co-worker’s load.

Jerry dedicated 32 years to nursing and spent 27 of them married to Valerie, a trauma ICU nurse. Together they raised three sons and had three grandchildren.

When the pandemic hit, Jerry transferred to the emergency room, where Valerie believes he contracted COVID-19, despite access to personal protective equipment. Jerry’s employer did not respond to questions about whether he may have contracted the virus at work.

Jerry had celebrated his 60th birthday in January with a blowout surprise party. His wife and sons invited family he hadn’t seen in years. “Not knowing that was going to be his last birthday,” said Valerie, “that’s the best thing I could have done for him.”

— Suzannah Cavanaugh, City University of New York | Published June 17, 2020

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An Urgent Care Physician Beloved by His Patients

(Nikki Friedman)

Arthur Friedman

Age: 62Occupation: Urgent care physicianPlace of Work: Independent Physician Association of Nassau/Suffolk counties in Smithtown, New YorkDate of Death: April 30, 2020

When Arthur Friedman did not get into medical school in the United States, he enrolled in a school in Tampico, Mexico, teaching himself Spanish. “He was willing to do whatever it took,” said Eric Friedman, his son.

Arthur went on to open his own urgent care facility in Commack, New York. Though he was best known for his decades of work there, he was working at a clinic in Smithtown over the past year.

Arthur loved boating, the outdoors and hoped to retire soon in Florida, to be near his children. When COVID-19 hit, he put those plans aside.

“He seemed like a superhero to us. Nothing fazed him,” said Nikki Friedman, his daughter. Arthur began to experience symptoms on April 10 and tested positive shortly after. (His employer did not respond to requests for comment.)

He died on April 30 and was buried next to his youngest son, Greg, who died in 2014.

Scores of Arthur’s former patients reached out to his children after his death to express their love and gratitude for him.

— Madeleine Kornfeld, City University of New York | Published June 17, 2020

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A Former Foster Child Who Was Charting Her Own Path

(The Fuqua family)

Clair Fuqua

Age: 28Occupation: ReceptionistPlace of Work: Pineville Children’s Clinic in Pineville, LouisianaDate of Death: April 2, 2020

Clair Fuqua was figuring out her path in life.

On her phone, she saved pictures of wedding dresses and venues, anticipating a proposal from her boyfriend of over two years, according to her parents, Curt and Claudia Fuqua. With an infectious smile, Clair welcomed young patients to the clinic, but she was looking forward to other roles in life.

“She was finally going to decide what she was going to do,” Curt said.

Her parents, who adopted Clair and two of her younger siblings when she was 10, hoped she would follow her passion for adoption and foster care into a career. Clair valued the love and stability of her forever family; before their adoption, Clair and her siblings had lived in six different foster homes.

When the coronavirus surfaced in Louisiana, Clair was already fighting bronchitis. At work, she wore a mask to keep her cough to herself. Days after a colleague was diagnosed with COVID-19, Clair developed a fever.

Clair’s employer declined to confirm how many staff members had become sick with COVID-19 or to comment for this story.

Clair was hospitalized on March 22.

“Everyone thought she would pull through,” Curt said.

In Clair’s honor, friends have donated Bibles and more than $2,100 to a local charity that supports children in the foster care system.

— Michaela Gibson Morris | Published June 17, 2020

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A Loving Mother and Nurse Who ‘Always Looked Tremendous’

(Scott Papetti)

Marybeth Papetti

Age: 65Occupation: Registered nursePlace of Work: CareOne at Livingston Assisted Living in Livingston, New JerseyDate of Death: March 24, 2020

Marybeth Papetti cared for beautiful things. She planted a garden filled with “a thousand different colors” of flowers, according to her son, Scott Papetti. Her nails, hair and makeup were always done, whether hanging out with girlfriends or dining out with her husband. “She always looked tremendous,” said Scott.

“You wouldn’t have thought she had any health issues,” said Scott, referring to her pulmonary fibrosis, a condition where lung tissue is scarred and blocks oxygen from passing through freely.

Scott does not know where his mother contracted the novel coronavirus, or whether she had adequate PPE at work. Marybeth worked as the director of nurses at an assisted living facility in New Jersey, which, as of June 11, had reported 39 cases of COVID-19 among residents and staff and 15 deaths. But she also attended parties and continued regular appointments with a pulmonologist.

Papetti went to the hospital on March 12 with a fever and shortness of breath. She stayed there for two weeks before she died.

Almost everyone who sent messages after Marybeth passed talked about how well put together she was, according to Scott. “She would have been a wreck with not getting her hair done,” he joked.

— Lila Hassan | Published June 17, 2020

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Pitching in After Retirement, Traveling Nurse Was an Adventurer

(Tiffany Olega)

Rosary Celaya Castro-Olega

Age: 63Occupation: Traveling registered nursePlace of Work: Various hospitals in Los Angeles CountyDate of Death: March 29, 2020

Rosary Celaya Castro-Olega wasn’t what you’d call shy. At her daughter’s basketball games, she was the loudest voice in the bleachers. She dressed head-to-toe in purple: purse, glasses, phone, scrubs. She was Kobe Bryant’s No. 1 fan. And she loved sharing stories with patients.

Her oldest daughter, Tiffany Olega, recalled meeting her mother’s patients.

“They’d say, ‘Your mom has told me all about you!’” she recounted. “She didn’t just do her rounds and disappear.”

Even after retiring in 2017 from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, she couldn’t stay away. She filled in at hospitals that were shorthanded. In between, she traveled the globe. In 2019, she visited Germany, Japan and China.

She had a cruise planned in March. When it was canceled because of the coronavirus, she took shifts at various hospitals in Los Angeles County, hoping to help out. Olega doesn’t know if her mom cared for COVID patients. But Castro-Olega and her twin daughters — Olega’s younger sisters — developed symptoms in mid-March. All three wound up hospitalized. Castro-Olega never came home.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti honored her as the first health care worker to die of COVID-19 in L.A. County.

— Maureen O’Hagan | Published June 12, 2020

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Phlebotomist Often Struck Patients’ Funny Bones

Jess Fajardo (Left) and her friend Maria Hernandez (Maria Hernandez)

Jessica ‘Jess’ Fajardo

Age: 30Occupation: PhlebotomistPlace of Work: Center for Hypertension and Internal Medicine in Odessa, TexasDate of Death: April 12, 2020

Jessica “Jess” Fajardo had the same best friend for 28 of her 30 years: Maria Hernandez. They hung out in school and after school. They got jobs at a restaurant and, later, a video arcade. They rented an apartment.

Even when Hernandez married, moved away and had children, they talked or texted daily. “She would take care of anybody she could,” Hernandez said.

In phlebotomy, Fajardo found a career she loved. Patients loved her, too — even though her job was sticking them with needles. More than one commented on her sense of humor, her skill, her bubbly cheer.

In late March, Fajardo started coughing, but with no identified coronavirus cases in the county, she was diagnosed with asthmatic bronchitis. It got worse. When a colleague was hospitalized with COVID-19, Fajardo went for a test. Days later, she sought emergency care.

Dr. Madhu Pamganamamula, who runs the clinic where Fajardo worked, said precautions had been in place since mid-March. Ultimately, six employees tested positive for the virus; four others tested positive for the antibodies.

Hospitalized and intubated, Fajardo’s condition appeared to be improving. But she died after doctors removed her ventilator. Said Hernandez, “she was an amazing friend.”

— Maureen O’Hagan | Published June 12, 2020

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A ‘Protective’ Presence, He Drove Seniors to Medical Appointments

(Rebecca Garrett)

Brian Garrett

Age: 45Occupation: Van driver for patientsPlace of Work: Columbine Health Systems in Fort Collins, ColoradoDate of Death: March 31, 2020

Brian Garrett had classic COVID-19 symptoms: cough, fatigue, fever, nausea, vomiting, breathing difficulty and loss of taste. But he fell ill early in the pandemic’s U.S. spread, his wife, Rebecca, said, and the health clinic he visited said it was probably the flu.

By March 23, the otherwise vigorous, nearly 6-foot-5 father of four (ages three to 20) told Rebecca, “Something’s just not right inside.” He was admitted to the hospital that day. County health officials registered his as a COVID-19 death.

Garrett, who transported senior residents to medical appointments, became ill before the use of protective gear became widespread. “We had that conversation that all these people would be so vulnerable,” Rebecca said. “He became ill so early on that no one was [wearing] masks.”

A spokesperson for his employer did not respond to requests for comment about whether Garrett was exposed to COVID-19 at work.

On Facebook, Garrett’s nephew, Brandon Guthrie, posted that Brian was a protective figure. “He was our tall older brother,” Guthrie wrote. Despite his imposing stature, it was his kindness that stood out. In an interview, Guthrie said, “He genuinely cared about everybody.”

— Sharon Jayson | Published June 12, 2020

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From a Traumatic Childhood to a Life ‘Bigger Than Himself’

(The Simpson family)

James Simpson

Age: 28Occupation: Mental health technicianPlace of Work: Sunstone Youth Treatment Center in Burien, WashingtonDate of Death: April 10, 2020

James Simpson’s difficult childhood in the foster care system led him to a career at a youth mental health center — where he worked with kids who reminded him of himself. “He had been through so much trauma and abandonment as a child,” said Chezere Braley, his cousin. “And he did not become a product of his environment.”

James’ sister Kamaria Simpson described him as the life of the party. “He was always smiling, even if he was having a bad day,” she said.

James’s family believes he contracted COVID-19 during an outbreak at work, where eight of the center’s 15 residents were infected. Sunstone waited over a week before telling James he may have been exposed to the virus, Kamaria said. She said the center also delayed in providing employees with adequate protective gear and that when her brother became sick, he was told to come in anyway. On April 6, he was sent home with a fever; he died in his apartment four days later.

In a written statement, Sunstone’s parent company, Multicare, said the organization “took early and aggressive steps to prevent the spread of the virus” at work, including “early access to PPE, sanitizer, training for staff and testing.” It added that the company’s policy was always to direct staff to stay home when sick.

Braley and Kamaria said they’re grieving, but they’re also angry. “He risked his life,” said Braley. “He deserved so much better.”

— Holly DeMuth, City University of New York | Published June 12, 2020

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A Physician Assistant Who Mentored Residents at His Hospital

(Alexander Beylinson)

Alex Bass

Age: 52Occupation: Physician assistantPlace of Work: NYC Health + Hospitals/Coney Island in Brooklyn, New YorkDate of Death: April 10, 2020

Alex Bass was technically a physician assistant, but his patients all called him “Dr. Bass,” a title his boss said was well-deserved.

“His patients often sent us letters, thanking us for the services that he provided and saying how great he was,” said Dr. Abdo Kabarriti, chief of urology at Coney Island Hospital.

Bass moved to the U.S. from Ukraine in his mid-20s. Rather than redoing medical school, he decided to become a PA. His extensive knowledge led him to mentor numerous urology residents.

“He helped a lot of people really become who they are today,” Kabarriti said.

When Bass noticed a fever spike in mid-March, he stopped going to work and made an appointment with Dr. Alexander Beylinson, his primary physician and friend of 26 years.

He arrived at his office on March 20 looking “very sick,” so Beylinson tested him for COVID-19 and sent him to the hospital.

A few days later, the test came back positive. At that point, it was too difficult for Bass to talk. Soon after, he was put on a ventilator, until he died.

The hospital did not comment on whether Bass had worked with COVID-19 patients.

Beylinson was one of the 10 people at Bass’ funeral. He doesn’t feel he achieved closure, he said, and still considers Bass his “hero.”

— Shoshana Dubnow | Published June 10, 2020

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‘There Were So Many Things She Had Unfinished’

(Brittany Mathis)

Dulce Garcia

Age: 29Occupation: Clinical interpreterPlace of Work: University of North Carolina Hospitals in Chapel Hill, North CarolinaDate of Death: May 26, 2020

Dulce Garcia loved to dance. On weekends, she would escape with friends to the Luna Nightclub in Durham, where they would romp to bachata, merengue and reggaetón. “It was our ritual,” said Brittany Mathis, one of her close friends.

At dawn, those unable to safely drive would sleep over at Garcia’s. “She was the group mom,” Mathis said. “She’d tell us, ‘We don’t want to lose anyone.’”

Garcia was “the rock and foundation” for her family, Mathis said. As a teen, Garcia cared for siblings while her parents worked. She also volunteered at the neighborhood Boys & Girls Club.

When Garcia learned about the health care gaps faced by Spanish speakers, she joined the hospital. There, she was “surprised at how much she could help,” Mathis said, “and how many needed her.”

The week after she picked up a Sunday shift, she developed a fever. Mathis was not sure whether she received personal protective equipment (PPE). “Our PPE policies have always followed CDC guidance,” the hospital said through a spokesperson.

The symptoms “wouldn’t go away,” Mathis said. “It just doesn’t feel real. There were so many things she had unfinished.”

— Eli Cahan | Published June 10, 2020

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A Friendly Nursing Assistant Who Worked Into Her 70s

Antonia ‘Tony’ Sisemore

Age: 72Occupation: Certified nursing assistantPlace of Work: Stollwood Convalescent Hospital at St. John’s Retirement Village in Woodland, CaliforniaDate of Death: April 30, 2020

Antonia Sisemore always wore a smile — around her family, at church and at her job at a retirement home, where she worked through the coronavirus pandemic.

In a Facebook post, her colleagues called her “one of our most talented and dedicated CNAs.” She worked “tirelessly and unfailingly to deliver care, compassion, and love to those more vulnerable than herself,” it said. (Her family declined to be interviewed for this article.)

Comments remarking on her kindness and work ethic poured in from patients and their families. “She went the extra mile to [make] sure I had what I needed and was comfortable,” wrote a former patient. “Tony was one of my mother’s caregivers,” wrote another Facebook user. “She was selfless … it breaks my heart that the residents will no longer have her.” Some mentioned that Sisemore cheered people up with her sense of humor. “I remembered you [danced] in front of me,” another former patient wrote.

Sisemore’s obituary says she battled COVID-19 for four weeks after passing away from complications from the virus. The nursing home where Sisemore worked reported 66 confirmed cases and 17 deaths according to county data. Over half of the infections were among staff members. The facility did not respond to requests for comment.

— Anna Jean Kaiser, The Guardian | Published June 10, 2020

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A Nurse, Family Linchpin and Generous Aunt

(Mario Thompson)

Adlin Thompson

Age: 56Occupations: Certified nursing assistant and endoscopy technicianPlaces of Work: NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital and Isabella Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation in New York CityDate of Death: April 24, 2020

Adlin Thompson had 20 siblings and more than 30 nieces and nephews. Like her, many of them immigrated to New York City from St. Kitts and Nevis in the early 1980s. With such a large family, it was difficult to keep track of everyone, said Adlin’s son, Mario Thompson. But Adlin did — she was the glue who kept the family together.

Adlin worked long hours between her two jobs. When she wasn’t at the nursing home or the hospital, she visited family, and “never came home empty-handed,” often toting gifts of socks or perfume, Mario said.

Adlin cared for patients who had been diagnosed with COVID-19 at both her jobs. She was always covered in protective gear, said Mario. Still, he worried that her asthma made her particularly vulnerable to the coronavirus. Mario believes she contracted the virus at the nursing home, where he said she had more direct contact with patients.

A spokesperson for the facility said it “followed state guidelines as it relates to infection prevention and control procedures.”

Adlin died four days after testing positive for COVID-19. She was alone in her home, preparing to go to the hospital.

— Lila Hassan | Published June 10, 2020

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Housing Supervisor Committed Herself to Helping the Vulnerable

(Barbara Abernathy)

Michelle Abernathy

Age: 52Occupation: Residential services supervisorPlace of Work: Elisabeth Ludeman Developmental Center in Park Forest, IllinoisDate of Death: April 13, 2020

Barbara Abernathy said she is trying to figure out what to do with six bins of toys her daughter bought for neighborhood children.

Growing up in Chatham, a middle-class neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago, Michelle Abernathy “was always trying to help somebody,” Barbara said.

Michelle spent decades investigating child abuse and neglect while holding night jobs mentoring children.

A supervisor at a state-run facility for developmentally disabled adults, she bought clothes, games and snacks for residents. A staff memo lauded her “big heart and nurturing personality.”

She fell ill March 28 and was hospitalized April 6, too weak to walk.

Three other workers at the facility died of COVID-19. A spokesperson for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which represents workers at Ludeman, said that early in the pandemic the staff had a “huge struggle” to get personal protective equipment (PPE).

The Illinois Department of Human Services said it “can’t say precisely” how workers caught the virus and was working to provide sufficient PPE.

After long professing that she was too busy for marriage, Abernathy recently had become engaged to Torrence Jones, a colleague. She had planned to surprise her mother with the news but never had the chance.

— Mary Chris Jaklevic | Published June 5, 2020

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A Loving Bookkeeper Who ‘Had the Most Awesome Laugh’

(Sean Diaz)

Cassondra Grant Diaz

Age: 31Occupation: Nursing home bookkeeperPlace of Work: Chelsea Place Care Center in Hartford, ConnecticutDate of Death: April 29, 2020

Cassondra Diaz was a receptionist-turned-bookkeeper at a nursing home in her hometown.

“She was my therapist, my fashion consultant, my hair designer,” said her older sister, Takara Chenice. “I called her my ‘big little sister.’”

Loved ones described her as “an old soul,” loyal to her family, including her husband, Sean Diaz. In their free time, the couple would hit the highway for a long drive, venturing to parks, lakes and the beach.

Her family believes she contracted the coronavirus at work. A spokesperson for Chelsea Place confirmed that the nursing home had COVID cases among staff and patients. It said staffers were provided with personal protective equipment. Despite wearing protective gear, removing her work clothes at the door and showering after work, Cassondra developed symptoms in mid-April.

On April 29, she woke up having difficulty breathing and pain in her leg, said Sean, who called an ambulance. She died that day.

Sean keeps a photo of her in their car. “My six years with her were better than any lifetime I had before her,” he said.

— Madeleine Kornfeld, City University of New York | Published June 5, 2020

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A Doting Family Man, He Was a Long-Standing Fixture at His Hospital

(Susan Ferranti and family)

David Ferranti

Age: 60Occupation: Hospital equipment coordinatorPlace of Work: St. Elizabeth‘s Medical Center in Brighton, MassachusettsDate of Death: May 2, 2020

David Ferranti was committed to his two families — both at home and at work. In his job on the engineering unit, he was really part of every team in the hospital, wrote St. Elizabeth’s president, Harry Bane, in a note to employees. “He was always worried about ‘his nurses’ and ‘his departments’ having what they needed to best care for our patients.”

Ferranti worked at the hospital for almost 42 years “and he loved every day of it,” said his father, Savino Ferranti. St. Elizabeth’s was treating many COVID-19 patients when David became infected with the virus, his father said, but it was impossible to say where he caught it. St. Elizabeth’s had no further comment about his case.

Ferranti was a family man “and the greatest son you can imagine,” his father said. He had a wife, Susan, and a son, John.

Ferranti worked in his garden and enjoyed walks in nature