Unvaccinated Portuguese family ‘frightened’ of vaccination died within a WEEK of contracting COVID over dinner.
A chef in the United Kingdom has described how he lost his mother, father, and brother within a week of contracting COVID during a family meal.
Francis Goncalves, who lives in Wales, is devastated by the loss – and claims that all three did not receive vaccines due to fear generated by anti-vaxxers.
Shaul, 40, his mother Charmagne, 65, and father Basil, 73, gathered for a family dinner, unaware that Basil had contracted the virus while in hospital a few days earlier.
Within two weeks, all three became gravely ill in their hometown of Portugal, while Francis was in the United Kingdom working in a restaurant.
Francis described his brother as the “healthiest person” he knew and believes the vaccine would have saved his life, adding, “When he wasn’t working out in the gym or running, he was out walking.” He hadn’t drank in 15 years and followed a plant-based diet.” Francis, 43, said his brother quickly began “feeling bloated and exhausted.”
Francis passed the tests necessary to travel to Portugal – but his father and brother died.
When he arrived, he discovered his mother was struggling to cope with the virus due to a number of underlying health issues, including an autoimmune disease.
“She was also in an induced coma,” Francis explained. They permitted me to see her, which was already a sign that things were not going well and that I needed to dress in full PPE.” Days later, he received word that Charmagne had also died.
A week later, on August 1, all three were buried alongside one another in the COVID section of a Lisbon cemetery.
He was informed that relocating their bodies would never be possible due to the circumstances.
Francis grew up in South Africa with his “small and close” family, but they relocated to Cardiff in 2015 to escape violence.
A year later, he and his family relocated to Portugal, where his father was born.
“My father gave everything,” he explained. He would wear worn-out shoes in order for us to have the best.
“I could see how much he adored his mother and how much she adored him. My mother was a mother hen who would go to great lengths for us.
“My brother was my best friend.” Francis hopes that sharing his story will persuade others to seek the vaccine – after all three previously declined.
“They became entangled in a lot of anti-vaccination propaganda,” he explained. It preys on the fearful.”
