For three Tampa sisters, COVID-19 left her without parents.
Their father, Alfonso Cardenas, died on August 2, after fighting the virus for about six weeks. He died two weeks before he turned 56. For the past six years, Cardenas has been the sole parent and support for his children, after his wife and children’s children, Clara Gomez, died of cancer after a 12-year battle with the disease.
Twenty-year-old twin sisters Jhoana and Alejandra and their 14-year-old brother, Ivan, remind her how her father has done everything for her in the last six years, and tried to be both a father and a mother to her. being.
‘He made sure my brother, sister and I had someone to talk to. He would always listen to us, “said Jhoana of her father, who was a resident of Colombia. He did everything in his power – he made sure we were happy and fulfilling all the time. “
Cardenas’ work revolved around helping others; he worked as a family service counselor at a funeral home. He was also a coach at a local football club, where he coached his twin daughters and son since they were 6 years old.
‘When we were growing up he was always very positive. He would say that there was a solution to every problem you could find, ”Jhoana said.
Cardenas has always been the life of parties. ‘If we were going to family parties and they had music, he would always want to dance. When my sister and I said no, he would all start dancing stupid, ‘she said.
Cardenas began to feel sick over Father’s Day weekend. A week after he had spent most of the time in bed shivering and he asked his daughters to take him to the hospital.
At the hospital, a COVID-19 test was performed and Cardenas was sent home to wait for the results which would take 3 to 5 days. During that time, he remained even less so. In early July, Jhoana took her father to Tampa General Hospital and was sent home again.
But three days later he experienced a short circuit at home and could barely get out of bed. Jhoana Cardenas took him back to Tampa General Hospital, where he spent the month of July until his death on August 2.
Since Cardenas’ children could not visit him in the hospital, they fascinated him twice, but he was intubated and sedated.
“Even when we saw him, he could not talk to us,” Jhoana said. “We told him we loved him.”
The day Cardenas died, they were allowed to visit him.
“The doctor said he was no longer infected and had a negative test. They let us enter the room to say goodbye. He had had a tracheotomy and had a feeding tube. He looked different because he had not shaved, ‘she said.
Jhoana says they have no idea how he got infected because he was very careful. ‘He barely left the snake. He only went to work. We were not really sure how he got infected. ”
For now, Cardenas’ children rely on extended family and friends for help. They still live in the house where they grew up with their father’s uncle.
Jhoana is a student at the University of South Florida while pursuing her twin sister at Hillsborough Community College; her little brother just started school. One of her best friends started a GoFundMe page to help her with expenses.
The siblings are very close, continuing with the example set by their parents.
‘We always had breakfast, lunch and dinner together. We sit together and talk, “said Jhoana. This part has not changed. ”
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