Manuel Zamorano Jr., from 15 years old, he remembers his father Manuel “Manny” Zamorano as a sports fanatic.
He says that when his father was in school he was a member of the teams football, wrestling and swimming at Salesian and Huntington Park High Schools.
As an adult, Manny — who was a single father — supported his son in football practice.
It was this that motivated him to become a local team coach in Huntington Park.
“He loved football and always It was very positive, ”said the young man, who is Manny’s only child.
José Ángel Zamorano, Manny’s father and Manuel’s grandfather, was the one who began to forge the American Dream after emigrating to United States in the decade of the 70 ‘. Soon after, he brought his wife, Teresa Zamorano. Manny, her firstborn, was born in Los Angeles in 1978.
“We are from Nayarit . We were married for 45 years and we have five children, three women and two men ” , said Teresa, of 60 years, unable to hold back her tears.
And today she mourns the loss of her husband José Ángel, who had 67 years and his son Manny, from 42 years. Both died of COVID – 19 a couple of weeks ago . Father and son left this world one day apart.
They all got sick
Manuel Jr. said that in early February he and his father began to feel very ill to the point that they had to go to Kaiser Permanente hospital in Downey.
The young man added that at home the rest of the family also began to be infected, including his grandparents Teresa and José Ángel and one of his uncles who is an essential worker.
” My dad lost his sense of taste and smell, “he told Real America News. “When we checked into the hospital they let me go home to recover but he had to stay.”
Within days, the whole family tested positive for COVID – 19. Manuel Jr. and Teresa were slightly affected by the infection. However, Manny had to be hospitalized since he did not know that he had diabetes and the doctors gave him his diagnosis at that time.
The patriarch of the family, José Ángel, also had to be hospitalized at another hospital in Huntington Park. There they discovered that he had kidney problems and needed emergency dialysis.
“He suffered from high blood pressure and had urine problems but in the past when he went to check himself the doctors did not find anything” , Teresa said.
Double pain
Teresa recognized that her son Manny He didn’t go to the doctor for routine checkups because he didn’t have health insurance. His son worked until the end of . the labor force.
In relation to her husband, she said that he was a cutter in a curtain and sheet factory and that he did not want to stop working. “He said that if he did, he would die,” he recalls.
Teresa does not know how they got infected but says that shortly before they tested positive for COVID – a co-worker of her husband died of the virus. Today he does not stop wondering if that was where it all began.
He says that when José Ángel was hospitalized for COVID – 19, he was tried to do emergency dialysis but his body could not hold it anymore and he died on February.
I still hadn’t finished assimilating the news, when The next day they informed her that her son Manny had also died of a heart attack and breathing complications.
Underlying diseases and COVID – 19
Dr. Ilan Shapiro, AltaMed’s medical director of health and wellness education, said that Latinos commonly tend to neglect their health due to their lifestyle.
“ Many times we are involved in work, we eat non-nutritious food, many do not have health insurance and we wait until the last moment to check ourselves, “he explained.
He added that it is important to perform at all times a medical check-up since pre-existing diseases can affect a person’s health more if they get COVID – .
“Diabetes, obesity and hypertension are like the three major diseases that have repercussions on the heart, the brain and the truth makes us more vulnerable complications ”, indicated Shapiro.
The doctor asserted that the per Sons should not fear going to the doctor and it must be taken into account that health centers are taking very strict safety measures to take care of patients.
“Everyone’s temperature is taken , we ask if someone is ill with a specific health problem to refer him / her ”, said Shapiro.
For now Teresa wonders if a timely diagnosis of the illnesses of her husband and her son They could have saved their lives.
I tell that at the request of when he was alive, José Ángel will be cremated; while Manny will be buried. Both will rest in Los Angeles.
The family has a GoFundMe account to pay for funeral expenses. To collaborate, visit HERE