WALTHAM — The daughters of a couple who died six days apart from coronavirus are thanking those who risked their own health to comfort their parents in their final hours.
Merilyn, 79, and Jim Holleran, 83, would have been married 60 years in October. The Hollerans had lived in Cambridge and raised their kids there, but had most recently been living together in assisted living community Benchmark Senior Living at Waltham Crossings, before becoming ill.
Merilyn was taken to Mount Auburn Hospital in March for what was believed to be the flu, pneumonia and sepsis, her daughter, Susan Phillips, told Boston 25 News by FaceTime from her Virginia Beach home Thursday.
Merilyn was recovering at Arlington nursing home and rehab Park Avenue Health Center and planning to reunite with her husband when she tested positive for COVID-19. It’s unclear where she contracted the virus.
“My mother was getting ready to go home to my father at Waltham Crossings, but because of the (virus) didn’t,” Phillips said. “The last time she spoke to him... He told her that he loved her, and they called each other, 'My sweetheart.’ And she always said, ‘You’re the love of my life, Jimmy.’"
As Merilyn's health began to decline, Jim's did, too - but much faster. A universal coronavirus test for all residents at the Waltham facility last week showed Jim was positive.
"The nurse was coming to check on my father, and when she got there, his oxygen had dropped so low, but he was showing no symptoms whatsoever," Phillips said.
Jim was taken to Newton-Wellesley Hospital, where a nurse held his phone so his daughters could speak to him before he passed away. Another nurse held his hand as he took his final breath.
Such acts of kindness and comfort are becoming more common among health care workers as hospital visitation restrictions amid the pandemic prevent family members from being present.
"My heroes," Phillips said of the nurses. "What they did to make it possible for my sister and I to say goodbye to our father... It was so important that we didn't want to him to be alone."
As Phillips was grieving her father's death, it was becoming clear her mother wasn't going to recover either.
On Sunday, Phillips happened to see a Facebook post of a Boston 25 News story about Catholic priests entering hospital rooms in protective gear to give last rites to coronavirus patients. She called the Archdiocese of Boston Monday, and, within a couple hours, a priest was administering the sacrament to her devout Catholic mother at her bedside in Arlington, as the family listened on speaker phone. Hours later, Merilyn died.
"I honestly believe it was a miracle," a tearful Phillips said. "It was exactly what my mother needed, so that she would be at peace."
The Hollerans' untimely deaths are a tragic example of how rampant the virus is. But their daughters are thankful for the priests and health care workers risking their health to make sure no one dies alone.
“I just know that my parents are at peace and they’re together,” Phillips said, “because they were the love of each other’s lives.”
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