New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
Widow of probation officer pained by COVID’s grip
Katie Coelho is still haunted each day by her husband’s absence since he died in April with COVID-19.
She sees him in the faces and actions of her 3-year-old son and 18-month-old daughter. She thinks about his last days, in Danbury Hospital, and how he looked when she rushed to his side after a frantic 3 a.m. phone call from one of his nurses, only to realize it was too late — he had already died.
Mostly, though, Katie Coelho is haunted by what might have been, and by the life that her family was supposed to have.
“My husband was such a fantastic human being and I can picture what his life would be like if he had not gotten sick,” Coelho said. “It doesn’t get any better for families like mine. My kids are going to have to live with the fact that their dad isn’t here.”
Before his death, Jonathan Coelho, 32, left a note on his phone for his wife and children.
“I love you guys with all my heart and you’ve given me the best life I could have asked for,” the note began.
Jonathan Coelho, a probation officer at the Stamford courthouse, was among the state’s earliest cases and died on April 22. Last week, Connecticut surpassed 100,000 confirmed COVID cases and nearly 5,000 residents have died since the start of the pandemic in March.
For Katie Coelho, 33, it’s painful to see the pandemic continue to grip the state and the rest of the nation.
“It’s absolutely frustrating that we are still in this position,” she said. “This ‘simple virus,’ which some people think this is, has destroyed my life.”
Katie Coelho has been an outspoken critic of President Donald Trump, and accused him of using his own COVID-19 diagnosis as “political propaganda,” instead of motivating people to protect themselves and others against the illness.
Coelho, who has twice appeared on CNN with Anderson Cooper, said she has been criticized for her comments, but she stands by them.
“I don’t blame Trump for the virus coming to America,” she said. “But his actions and words since then are what I hold him accountable for.”
Coelho believes Trump has encouraged people to not take the virus as seriously as they should, so she was heartened by Joe Biden’s presidential win.
“The night Joe Biden did his acceptance speech, it was the first cathartic cry-sobfest I had in six months,” she said. “I’m hopeful with Joe Biden, and I haven’t been hopeful in a long time. There needs to be a change and there needs to be empathy and Donald Trump was never the person to do that.”
Since her husband’s death, Katie Coelho has not only struggled with her grief and pain, but with the day-to-day logistics of caring for two young children. Her son has multiple disabilities and requires constant care. He is unable to attend day care and the family’s insurance doesn’t cover private nursing.
Katie Coelho, who moved in September with her children from Bethel to Southbury, has been unable to work since she is her son’s primary caregiver. However, her family has survived with the outpouring of support they received through a GoFundMe campaign that raised more than $833,000.
“We were blessed with so many people making donations to our family,” Coelho said. “That is the only way we’ve been able to stay afloat, because my husband was the main provider.”
Despite the tragedy, she said the children appear to be “thriving.”
“Kids are always resilient,” she said.
But for her and her husband’s family, “it feel as if it’s just getting worse every day.”
Katie Coelho is encouraged by the possibility of COVID-19 vaccines being available soon. However, she said there will still always be a hole at the center of her life.
“The only resolution is him coming home,” she said, “and that is not a possibility.”