Day works as a family advocate for Warren County Community Services.
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Pets, nieces and nephews, Day’s husband, her two daughter’s families, friends and other loved ones all got in to perform a piece of the song dedicated to Day’s perseverance. Day watched with tears on her iPad from her hospital bed.
“The last few months have been so hard on my mom,” said Amanda Moore, Day’s oldest daughter. “Especially this last month because she has had to go through all of this alone.”
“She is a lot tougher than me,” said Rick Day, Angie Day’s husband. “I would have given up two months ago, but she keeps fighting. Her reason is always everyone else. She doesn’t want anyone to worry about her. ‘Overcomer’ is a perfect word for her. I’m so excited to be bringing her home. She is the love of my life.”
Angie Day’s health troubles began before COVID-19 arrived in the U.S. Angie Day had already beat breast cancer once, but in December 2019, was diagnosed with lymphatic cancer. Then in March, as hospitals began to prepare for the coronavirus pandemic, Angie Day discovered she also had a rare autoimmune disease.
“She woke up with a high fever and she was hospitalized at Kettering in the coronavirus unit and we were freaking out because we knew her immune system wouldn’t be able to fight it,” said Kristen Shannon, Angie Day’s niece.
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Despite having all the symptoms, Angie Day tested negative for coronavirus but was moved to the ICU to fight whatever was causing her to deteriorate. Angie Day has since been moved to an acute rehab facility, but has been in the hospital’s care for over a month and will need to re-learn how to walk after she is released — which could be soon, Shannon said.
“My mom talked to her earlier today and she said, ‘I just can’t wait to see somebody that I love,’” Shannon said.
Even on her worst days, Shannon said she will see her aunt posting to Facebook from her hospital bed, positive messages and words of encouragement to other people struggling amid the coronavirus.
“She hasn’t been able to (make any) income since December, insurance wasn’t covering treatments at first — just a scary amount of medical bills coming through when you are living at the hospital for a month,” Shannon said.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to support Angie Day.
“I’m so proud of her,” said Lauren Burrows, Angie Day’s youngest daughter. “I’ve learned so much from her about resilience and the importance of family. We wanted to make this video to make her smile and as a reminder that she’s so loved, even though we can’t be together right now.”
Stories of Hope
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