Vinnie Queiroga tried to be careful as he shopped for Instacart and made deliveries for Door Dash, but in retrospect, he now believes that is how he became infected with COVID-19.
The Rockville resident spent 30 days in the hospital, including 25 days in the Intensive Care Unit and 17 days on a ventilator and is recovering at home now.
Here is their story:
Queiroga doesn’t remember much of his medical journey as he was heavily medicated, but his wife, Solange, and their six-year-old daughter remember it well.
“It’s not just your body. It’s not just you,” who suffers from this debilitating disease, she said. It is the whole family, whose emotions are affected so drastically.
Through her husband’s hospitalization, his wife was not permitted to visit but did receive Facetime daily updates from his medical team.
“I was always waiting for the good news, but as you know, I didn’t have good news for a long time,” she said.
The Queirogas came to this country from their native Brazil 17 years ago and are members of Bethel World Outreach Church in Olney.
Through very happy to be home, Vinnie Queiroga still has a long way to go to get his strength back and improve his heart and lung functions. He isn’t allowed to return work for at least a month and a half, he said.
His message to everyone is simple – wear a mask, wash your hands and social distance. “That mask is a sign of respect.”
