Nat’l Guardsman who ‘loved with all he had’ dies of COVID minutes after wife in North Carolina A folded flag sits on a casket during ceremonial funeral training at Ellsworth Air Force Base, S.D., Feb. 22, 2016. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman Sadie Colbert/Released)
A North Carolina man who loved his wife “with every fiber of his being” spent some of his final moments holding her hand.
Thomas Fortenberry and his longtime partner, Diane, were in side-by-side hospital beds before they both died of COVID-19 on the same day in January, according to their obituaries and a Raleigh-area health care provider.
“Mr. and Mrs. Fortenberry were high school sweethearts, married at 16 and 17 years old,” WakeMed hospital said last week in a blog post. “They had just celebrated their 52nd wedding anniversary.”
The Fortenberrys grew up in Mississippi, where their love first blossomed. Over the years, the couple became known for treating their friends as if they were family.
“Tommy was a true patriot, serving his country through the National Guard in the war against Vietnam,” an obituary on the Dignity Memorial funeral home website said. “Tommy was a man of few words, but he loved with all he had.”
Fortenberry also enjoyed seeing his wife in the spotlight.
“Her bigger than life personality could bring a smile to any face and laughter to every heart,” Diane Fortenberry’s obituary said.
The husband and wife were in their 60s and lived in Clayton, southeast of Raleigh, WRAL reported.
The two contracted COVID-19 around Christmas and eventually had to be admitted to the ICU at WakeMed Cary Hospital. Then, “after a very difficult course, their daughter decided to withdraw care,” the health team said.
The pair was extubated and moved to the same hospital room so they could spend their last moments together.
“With their daughters standing beside them, husband and wife were side by side, holding hands, their heads facing one another and, I swear Mr. Fortenberry had a smile on his face,” a WakeMed nurse said in the blog post.
The pair died within minutes of each other on Jan. 13.
“Tommy and Diane had such an amazing love for each other and we don’t believe their leaving their earthly home only 4 minutes apart was a coincidence,” the couples’ obituaries said.
At the time of their deaths, hospitals were overwhelmed with record numbers of coronavirus patients. Though officials in their blog post didn’t say whether the couple had been vaccinated against COVID-19, health experts have encouraged people to get their shots to help prevent them from getting seriously sick.
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