For 4-year-old (or rather, soon to be 5-year-old) Raiden Gonzalez, this year has been one of unimaginable loss.
In the span of only four months, the coronavirus stole both his mom and his dad from him. And now the toddler is preparing to celebrate his very first birthday without his beloved parents by his side.
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But despite the grief that will undoubtedly shroud that day, his family is determined to make his fifth birthday special so that little Raiden knows just how loved he truly is. In order to do so, they’re asking their community of San Antonio, Texas, for a little help.
On May 12, Raiden’s father, 33-year-old Adan Gonzalez Jr., started a new job as a cement truck driver.
As Raiden’s great-aunt Margie Bryant told CNN , Adan’s trainer tested positive for the virus, and by May 31, the Gonzalez family’s patriarch began exhibiting what he described to be “allergy-like” symptoms.
On June 3, he tested positive for the coronavirus himself. Six days later he was taken to the ICU. Just two weeks after that, Adan Gonzalez passed away.
Although understandably depressed by this loss, Adan’s wife and Raiden’s mother, 29-year-old Mariah Gonzalez, was feeling perfectly healthy herself.
The preschool teacher had been taking necessary precautions and wearing a face mask at school, Bryant confirmed. But on the evening of October 5, Mariah began experiencing shortness of breath and chest pains. Her mother, Rozie Salinas, called 911 and Mariah was rushed to the hospital.
“I didn’t think that was going to be the last time that I was going to see her,” Salinas told Good Morning America . “By [the next] morning, she was gone.”
While at the hospital, Mariah had tested negative for the coronavirus, but after she passed away, a second test came back positive.
As Salinas explained, the official causes of death on her daughter’s death certificate are listed as COVID-19, pneumonia and acute respiratory failure.
“We’re still having trouble processing everything because she just went too quick,” Salinas told GMA. “It didn’t make any sense to us.”
Now 4-year-old Raiden has been taken in by his maternal grandmother while his family struggles to pick up the pieces of his life.
“I told him, ‘The reason you haven’t seen Mommy in the past couple of days is because Mommy got real sick, and Mommy is an angel in the sky now, too,’ and he was just inconsolable,” Bryant told CNN of the moment she had to relay the devastating news of Mariah’s passing to the young boy.
“He says to me, ‘I want to be an angel in the clouds with my Mommy and Daddy.’ But I said, ‘No, we don’t even want to talk about that, but know that they are everywhere, they are watching you.'”
The family plans on holding a memorial service for Mariah and Adan after the holidays, but there’s still the matter of little Raiden’s upcoming birthday.
While the toddler will be turning five on November 22, the family will actually be celebrating one week later on November 28 with a larger-than-life birthday parade, thanks to the help of their supportive San Antonio community.
Raiden will be treated to quite the sight on his big day when he’s treated to his “wave and roar” dinosaur-themed drive-by parade.
A local fire department and Batman entertainer will take part in the COVID-safe celebration, along some monster truck, motorcycle, and classic car clubs who all want to help make the day as special as possible for the youngster. The family has also opened the invitation to anyone else in the area who would be willing to come out and participate in the parade.
“It’s a milestone birthday,” Bryant told CNN. “We just want [Raiden] to know that we’re going to be there for all of his birthdays and make sure he’s celebrated, and I know my niece has the cheesiest grin because she knows her boy is in good hands.”
The family has also set up an online fundraising campaign to raise money for Raiden’s future.
As of writing, that GoFundMe has raised well over $1650,000, far surpassing its initial goal of $25,000.
While the family appreciates the unbelievable generosity and kindness people have shown Raiden, Bryant said her biggest wish is for everyone to take the coronavirus pandemic seriously.
“I can’t say it enough… I know what it [COVID-19] has done to us, and I know the hurt that we feel, the void that it has left in our hearts, this little boy who doesn’t have his mom and dad now,” she told CNN. “You hear about the deaths, but you don’t ever really hear about the people left behind, and in this instance, it’s a 4-year-old.”
h/t: CNN , Good Morning America , GoFundMe
