Dead five-month-old baby fought coronavirus to the end
The death of a five-month-old daughter of a New York fighter has put a myth of children not dying from coronavirus to rest, and at the same time ignited tonnes of sympathy for parents of the infant who fought to the end.
Little Jay-Natalie La Santa, the daughter of firefighter Jerel La Santa, and his wife Lindsey, passed away from COVID-19 on Monday, April 20.
Her parents consoled themselves with the bravery of the less than six months old , who they gave the moniker ‘Warrior Princess’ for ‘her fighting spirit’ in the battle against the lethal virus.
“One of the worst experiences as a parent is to go through the loss of a child,” New York Fire Department Hispanic Society President, Jose A. Prosper, sorrowfully announced in an Instagram post.
The post shared a picture of Jerel in his uniform smiling with his wife and holding their little one.
“She had mommy and daddy wrapped around her little finger and knew it,’ a GoFundMe page for the family said.
“She was a little person with a big personality! We call her the Warrior Princess because she fought Covid-19 like nobody’s business!!!!
“Her fight inspired all of the nurses, doctors and staff members that knew her. Her purpose was served and she was called home on 4/20/2020. We thought we were having a baby, but had an angel instead,” the page said.
A virtual funeral service will be held for Jay-Natalie on Facebook Live on May 2 following an outpouring of support from the community, the Daily Mail reported.
The fundraiser has already surpassed its $30,000 goal raising $30,733 as of Thursday afternoon.
In New York state there are over 257, 000 cases of the virus and over 15,000 deaths, with a majority of those concentrated in New York City, which has a population of 8.4million and has recorded 9,944 confirmed coronavirus deaths.