Little Jay-Natalie La Santa, who was also called the "warrior princess" by her father, died on Monday, April 20, just a mere four months after coming into the world in November 2019.
The first child for the firefighter, Jerel La Santa, and his wife, Lindsey La Santa, Jay-Natalie, was known for her love "to be sung to, enjoyed watching bright colors, hearing mommy and daddy's voice, being kissed and hugged and most of all being rocked to sleep," said Danielle Monique in a GoFundMe post started to help cover the medical costs for the child.
Jay-Natalie became ill on Saturday, March 21 after she developed a high fever. An initial test for COVID-19 came back negative, but after a week in the hospital with no improvement, another test was given and came back positive, reported NBC News.
On GoFundMe, Jay-Natalie was described as a little person with a big personality.
"We call her the Warrior Princess because she fought COVID-19 like nobody's business," the post said. "Her fight inspired all of the nurses, doctors, and staff members that knew her."
After fighting for almost a month, Jay-Natalie died on Monday.
"We thought we were having a baby but had an angel instead," the post said.
A virtual memorial will be held for Jay-Natalie at 9 a.m., May 2 through Facebook live.
The GoFundMe reached their goal and are currently asking that donations be made in Jay-Natalie's name to help others at:
- https://www.montefiore.org/covid19fund
- https://www.cham.org/specialties-and-programs/neonatology/our-expertise
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