Foreign Property News | Posted by Hnin Ei Khin
Betty and Curtis Tarpley were together for most of their lives -- they went to the same high school in Illinois, met and fell in love in California as adults, got married, and raised two kids.
On June 18, after 53 years as a married couple, the two died from coronavirus within an hour of each other in a Texas hospital, spending their last moments together holding hands, their son told CNN.
Tim Tarpley said his mom, who was 80, had been sick for a few days when he took her to Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Fort Worth and found out she had Covid-19.
She was admitted on June 9 and his 79-year-old dad was admitted on the 11th.
Tarpley said he doesn't know how his parents got Covid-19.
Preparing to say goodbye
Tarpley, 52, said his dad was in the ICU and seemed to be doing well. Nurses had even been able to wheel Curtis to Betty's unit, so they could spend some time together.
Betty's condition declined, and Tarpley said she called him and his sister, Tricia, and told them she "was ready to go."
Tarpley said it was clear that she was uncomfortable and doctors said she didn't have much time.
Tarpley said he called his dad to update him on his mom's condition and told him how much he loved him.
Shortly after receiving the update from his kids, Curtis' oxygen levels plummeted.
'The right thing to do was to get them together'
"It felt like the right thing to do was to get them together," said Blake Throne, one of the ICU nurses caring for Curtis.
Throne said it took a team effort, but they were able to move Betty to the ICU, so she and her husband could be side-by-side.
When another nurse told Curtis that Betty was there, he tried to look over at her. But Throne said he was very weak.
Throne said he then put Betty's hand on Curtis' arm.
Communicating without words
"I honestly think they were so incapacitated that all they could do was talk with their souls or something, a special unspoken language," Tarpley said. "They obviously knew each other well enough that they could communicate without words."
Betty died after about 20 minutes and Curtis died about 45 minutes later, Throne said.
Ref: CNN
