A 39-year-old Cowichan Valley man who had been fighting COVID-19 for close to a month has passed away in hospital.
Joshua Mellor was a husband and father to two young girls, Georgia and Mila.
“What I would give to be able to kiss you one last time. To hold your hand. Tell you how much you meant to me and the 10 years we got to spend together,” wrote his wife, Miranda Mellor, in a statement shared with CHEK News.
“Saying goodbye to you yesterday morning was the hardest day of my life. You fought so hard to try and stay with us. I know you did. This is so surreal, I keep thinking you’ll come home from a typical long day of work. I know you’ll be with us, protecting me and the girls every day.”
She said she would think of her husband “every time I run my hands through Georgia’s sandy blonde hair, or look into Mila’s bright blue eyes.”
Joshua, who had asthma and was not vaccinated, first tested positive for the disease on Sept. 2.
He was later admitted into the ICU at Royal Jubilee Hospital and hooked up to a ventilator as his symptoms worsened.
In a public plea, Miranda, who herself has received two doses of vaccine, urged people to talk to their doctor if they are on the fence about getting vaccinated like her husband was. She said she wished she had urged Joshua to talk to his doctor, who knows his medical history.
Miranda is on maternity leave and Josh was a self-employed heavy-duty mechanic.
A GoFundMe to help Josh’s family with future expenses is trying to raise $50,000.
Kendall Hanson
