Helen Etuk.Photo: Facebook
Helen Etuk was on track to achieve her dream of becoming a pediatrician. The 20-year-old wasfinishing up her senior yearat the University of North Texas and planned to get her medical degree after graduation.
But after contracting COVID-19, Etukdied from the viruson Jan. 12, one month before her 21st birthday,The New York Timesreported.
Etuk, who also had lupus, hadgone back to in-person classesat the University of North Texas and did her best to distance from her classmates. She always wore a mask, her mother Ellen Clinton told theTimes. But late last year Etuk started coughing.
“She blamed herself, saying she made a mistake in going back to school. She said that sometimes students pull their masks down, so they cover their mouths but not their noses,” Clinton said.
Etuk’s cough was COVID-19, and she spent nearly three monthsin the hospitalwith the virus before her death in January. After raising moneyon GoFundMeto cover the costs, the family held a funeral for her at the end of January.
“She was a wonderful sister, daughter, and friend who touched the lives of those around her,” a friend of the family wrote on the fundraising page. “Helen dedicated her life to serve God, make her loved ones happy, and excel in her academics so that one day she may be fortunate to give her mother, Ellen Clinton, all the things she has desired.”
Clinton told theTimesthat it was clear from a young age that Etuk would be a high achiever.
“She never asked for dolls. She always asked for books,” her mother said. “When I would go to Walmart, she would say, ‘Can I buy books?’ That’s when I knew she was smart.”
“She would have done so much,” Clinton added.
As information about thecoronavirus pandemicrapidly changes, PEOPLE is committed to providing the most recent data in our coverage. Some of the information in this story may have changed after publication. For the latest on COVID-19, readers are encouraged to use online resources from theCDC,WHOandlocal public health departments.PEOPLE has partnered with GoFundMeto raise money for the COVID-19 Relief Fund, a GoFundMe.org fundraiser to support everything from frontline responders to families in need, as well as organizations helping communities. For more information or to donate, clickhere.
source: people.com
