Family remembers Delmario Cortez, 'a very jolly guy' lost to COVID-19

To those who knew and cared for Delmario Cortez, the language in Saturday's announcement was cold and official.

"The Joint Information Center was notified that Guam’s 59th COVID-19-related fatality occurred at the Guam Memorial Hospital (GMH) at approximately 2:13 p.m. The patient was a 73-year-old male with underlying health conditions that were compounded by COVID-19. He was admitted to GMH on September 26." 

But for Guam mechanical engineer Wilner Dizon, Cortez was his Kaka, "big brother" in the Pampanga dialect of the Philippines. Cortez, originally from Bataan, was married to Dizon's sister Teresita.

The couple would have celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on Sunday.

As they joined other relatives in mourning, Wilner Dizon and his wife, Loreto Dizon, remember Cortez as "a very jolly guy," fun to be around, sometimes teasing over the New Year's fritada.

News: Man is 61st COVID-19 fatality; 96 new cases Tuesday; more than 1,000 active cases

"I cooked it so there’s plenty soup, my version of fritada," Loreto Dizon said, "and I put a lot of soup, because that’s how (Wilner) wants it. Because my sister-in-law is a good cook, so every time I cook he’s teasing me, so he said, ‘What is this, is this sinigang?’“

"My sister’s a really good cook," Wilner Dizon said. "That’s why my brother-in-law became big (laughs). He loves eating. My sister cooks good.” 

For Cortez, a Philippine Navy apprenticeship program led to work as a pipefitter at Subic Bay for more than 20 years, then a stint in Saudi Arabia before coming to Guam and working at the Guam Shipyard, from which he retired.

Loreto Dizon, professionally a nurse, became the medical contact for the family. After getting sick, Cortez was placed in the hospital's COVID intensive care unit.

“We thought he was going to be OK, because he wasn’t going to be on a ventilator," she said, "but two days later, the doctor called and said they were going to put him on the ventilator because his oxygen saturation was dropping and he’s not responding to the treatments.”

As Cortez’ organs gradually began to shut down, a nurse helped to set up a Zoom chat for family members. “All the kids were able to see him before he died. One hour after they talked, the doctor called in and said, ‘he’s gone.’”

More from this section

New Taylor Swift Lyric Reignites Deadpool & Wolverine Theory

Taylor Swift was "always writing poetry" as a child

Jimmie Allen Had Suicidal Thoughts After Sexual Assault Allegations

“When we were doing the Zoom call, my sister-in-law said, ‘Why did it happen today? Tomorrow is our anniversary.’”

The couple had planned to renew their vows, Wilner said.

“It’s a tradition in the Philippines, but this one is golden. Fifty years, so it’s a big deal. They were also planning a family reunion with children and relatives there.”

The ongoing lockdown complicated the celebration, but there were plans to gather in family homes to mark the landmark event.

“But then two weeks prior to that, this thing happened," Loreto said. "It’s really so sad. My sister-in-law’s still in shock. They were really, really close. They’re inseparable.”

The Dizons agree that the medical personnel on Guam did their best, including administering the still-experimental drug Remdesivir. Like many on  Guam, Cortez suffered from hypertension and was diabetic, but he had care and medications for these problems.

He had recently undergone cataract surgery, allowing him to resume driving again.

“Before, he hardly left the house because of this COVID thing,” Loreto Dizon said.

Dropping his wife at work on the day he apparently contracted the virus, his only other stop was the ATM at Coast 360 in Mongmong-Toto-Maite and the Hagåtña post office, she said.

“We really don’t know how he got it.”

News: Kmart to close for 24 hours after associates test positive for COVID-19, McDonald's employees test positive

This article originally appeared on Pacific Daily News: Family remembers Delmario Cortez, 'a very jolly guy' lost to COVID-19