After spending 64 years together, David and Sondra Zorn were able to spend their final moments hospitalized with COVID-19 hand-in-hand.
David, 89, and Sondra, 83, died days apart earlier this month after being taken to Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital for complications from the coronavirus, the family said.
The couple's daughter, Deanna Wilkins, said that though the family is devastated by the loss, there is comfort in knowing that David and Sondra "were put in the same room and held hands in their final moments."
“It’s a story of love; it’s a story of commitment; it’s a story of how everyone at the hospital went above and beyond,” Wilkins said.
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter here.
Deanna shared a touching photo of her parents holding hands together across their hospital beds, along with their hands atop one another on the couple's wedding day.
The Zorns' nurse at Good Samaritan Hospital, Erin Stafford, said she keeps the photo nearby and looks at it as a reminder that this couple was able to be together in their final days.
“I’ll remember this even though it’s sad because we helped them be together and to hold hands and say goodbye,” Stafford said. “I have this picture to help me through the bad shifts, to remind me why I became a nurse.”
Local
Unlike much of 2020 and part of 2021, Stafford said that many hospitals can now allow patients to see at least one or two visitors to say goodbye to loved ones.
"We're happy that we could honor them and honor both patients and honor the family so that they could be with each other and say goodbye during these difficult times," Stafford said.
David and Sondra lived in Lombard for 55 years before buying a townhome in Bellwood, Wilkins said. The couple collected Coca-Cola and would go to conventions each year with their children.
