Gary Shirley‘s mother and stepfather both tested positive for the coronavirus in the past few months, and now he’s giving us an update on their status!
He and his wife, Kristina, recently took a family vacation to the beach where they had a medical emergency of their own, so it’s nice to know there’s some good news in their lives as well.
If you’ve been keeping up with Gary Shirley, you’ll know that his family has been hit hard by the pandemic. At the beginning of May, he shared an update on the status of his mother.
“This Mother’s Day is a little hard because my mother is very sick. A week ago she was diagnosed with Covid-19,” he wrote on Instagram. “Her line of work put her at a higher risk since she was working in activities and housekeeping at an assisted living facility.”
He continued to explain why this is extremely difficult for his family. “My wife and I have been trying to help by dropping off food (curbside) so she could focus on getting rest. We haven’t hugged her in about 3 months & we haven’t had her over inside our home for about 3 months,” he continued. “This has been extremely hard for all of us. Our youngest daughter has an immunodeficiency disorder where she gets sick so easily so we have stayed home and took this quarantine very seriously.”
Gary continued with his Mother’s Day post:
We have had to go to store a few times (kid free of course) however, I knew my mother would be exposed at some point due to her job which was very worrisome itself. Now, with a confirmed case of covid-19 we are worried more and limited on what we can do to help. She has good days and of course bad days like today. Her and Jody live together and I knew it would only be a matter of time before he would get it, and of course…. I believe he has it now. He has the symptoms, but hasn’t had the test yet.
So I will be dropping off breakfast in the morning on the porch and wishing her a Happy Mother’s Day while praying for her. All prayers are welcomed and much appreciated. Happy Mother’s Day to all the beautiful mothers and a BIG Happy Mother’s Day to my amazing wife.
Then, at the end of May, Gary revealed that his stepfather had gotten sick as well.
Jody was hospitalized on May 13th with Covid-19. His health continued to decline quickly within the first few days of being admitted. They tried different breathing machines, new covid-19 drug trials, plasma transfusions, and antibiotics until the Doctors had exhausted all their options for Jody. On May 16th Jody was continuing to struggle with breathing, he was fighting 106 degree fevers and the Doctors suggested that Jody be placed on a Ventilator and a drug induced coma. Today, after being on a ventilator for almost 2 weeks we are happy to announce Jody was weaned off the ventilator. He is only on 2 liters of oxygen thru a nose cannula and following simple commands. He has a long road of recovery which will involve physical therapy. Thank you ALL for your continued prayers, support and love for my mom, Jody, and our family.
Although tragedy struck twice, it appeared that Gary was handling his parents’ illnesses as well as he could. He spent time working on his garden, and then decided to take a little vacation with his family (with masks, of course).
But the vacation didn’t start off on the best foot, and someone had to go to the hospital.