A pair of Hempstead parents died of Covid-19 just two weeks apart, leaving behind their two children — but now the community is rallying to support the kids the couple left behind.
Sandra Lemus, 49, died on Feb. 26 and two weeks later, her 54-year-old husband, Ernesto Lemus, died on Mar. 16, just two days before their son’s 22nd birthday. In response, the staff of The Spaghettini, a Mineola eatery where Ernesto had spent five years working as a chef — and donated meals to NYU Winthrop workers throughout the pandemic — started a GoFundMe fundraiser to help provide for the children.
“We’re trying to help the kids as much as we can,” Joe Vetrano with Spaghettini told ABC7 News. “That’s the least we can do right now.”
The two children of the couple are 22-year-old Johalmo and 18-year-old Sandra Lemus, who have been touched by all of the support and donations they have received. The GoFundMe campaign has raised more than $80,000, having about 1,000 donors as of this post.
“The last few weeks were kinda scary but I was hoping to see us together by my birthday,” Johalmo stated in a recent Instagram post. “They were exemplary parents and I promise to be an exemplary son and brother.”
Those who would like to donate to the Lemus family can do so on the following site: https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-memory-of-ernesto-sandra-lemus.
