True Love Conquers All: Couple Married 53 Years Dies of COVID-19 in Same Room, One Hour Apart
Tim Tarpley remembers the painful conversation he had with his mother when she told him that she was ready to go, her body was done.
“I’m ready,” she said. “I’ve had enough. I’ve had a good life, my body is done.”
“No,” I said. “No!”, he screamed. “It’s not time yet!”, he said.
Tim’s mother contracted COVID-19 at the age of 80. She initially thought it was a respiratory infection, but after ten days of suffering, she made an appointment with her dentist, because she then thought it might be something related to her teeth.
Then confusion set in, and she crashed her car. The next day, she checked her blood sugar level, something she hadn’t done in 20 years.
Tim took his mother Betty to the local hospital where she tested positive for the coronavirus.
Betty had underlying health issues and his father Curtis (79) had even more serious health problems.
“They knew that if they got it, they wouldn’t survive,” he told ABC News.
A few days later, his father also tested positive for the virus, and was admitted to the hospital.
As Betty began to deteriorate, she called her son and told him she was ready to go. The hospital staff allowed Tim and his sister to say one last goodbye.
“We said our goodbyes, and mom said ‘OK, see you tomorrow!”
Nurses pushed Curtis’ bed next to his wife’s, and after 53 years of marriage, they passed away next to each other in the same room, one hour apart.
Tim is now in quarantine after testing positive for COVID-19 as well. But through his suffering and fragile health, he paid tribute to the hospital staff who cared for his parents.
“They are angels, with their radiant eyes. You don’t even see their faces,” he said.
Breaking down your body cell by cell
“I’ve seen how it breaks down your body,” he said about the coronavirus. “It’s designed to break down your body cell by cell.”
Tim is concerned that people are not taking the virus seriously anymore.
“Be aware of what you’re actually doing,” he says. “It’s clear that we all need to wear a mask.
Our thoughts are with Tim during these difficult times. Rest in peace, Betty and Curtis.
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