During these unprecedented times, we’ve lost many brave, selfless healthcare workers. We honor their memory and remind ourselves what we are fighting for.
Alex Palomo
Alex Palomo was a 44 year old Unit Secretary at Garfield. He’s described as a fun and loving person who always managed to put a smile on your face and lift your spirit when he saw you were feeling sad or upset. He was very outgoing and enjoyed spending time with family and friends. He was working to advance his career and was getting ready to start a new position in the administration at Cedars Sinai.
Rest in power, Alex.
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Angel Jurado
Angel Jurado was an EVS member who worked for Crothall at Tenet Modesto. His co-workers remember him as a “loving, smart, and funny 21-year old young man. He loved his family dearly. He made our work day fly by. He was always positive and gave good advice, he had a good heart and he’ll deeply be missed. ”
He leaves behind two daughters.
Rest in Power, Angel.
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Angelito Diwa
Angelito Diwa was a devoted husband, father, and lab assistant at Kaiser Orange County.
Rest in power, Angelito.
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Cindy Zepeda
Cindy Zepeda was a 38 year old appointment clerk at Kaiser Baldwin Park call center. She was two months pregnant and is survived by her 23-year old daughter.
“I was actually one of the interviewers when she got hired. After she passed her training she reached out to me and told me how thankful she was to have this job. She said it would be life changing for her. She had just gone through a major loss and she was happy to start a new chapter. I was not only her steward but a friend. She would send me text messages often. She was very open, honest, and genuine person. She loved her daughter very much and was extremely proud of her. She was also very excited to be pregnant again. She had just text me on June 26 to let me know. God blessed me with her friendship. “
Rest in power, Cindy.
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Da-Wei Liang
Dai-Wei Liang was a 60 year old radiology tech at Garfield Medical Center in Monterey Park, CA. He always put his work and family before himself. Unfortunately, he recently passed away from COVID-19 and both his wife and son are recovering from COVID-19 too.
Rest in Power, Dai-Wei.
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Gaby O’Donnell
Gaby O’Donnell (Mother of Robert Garcia, mayor of Long Beach) was a Medical Assistant at a City of Hope Clinic. She fought for the rights of health care workers and helped organize them into the union last year.
Rest in Power, Gaby.
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Imelda Sudlra
Imelda Sudlra was a secretary at Greater El Monte Community Hospital. Our steward Mike Perea was the RT attending her. He knew her for 8 years and remembers her humor.
Rest in power, Imelda.
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Juletta Baca
Juletta Baca, known as Julie to her co-workers, was a night shift ER secretary at St Joseph Medical Center in Stockton which is one of the most impacted hospitals in the state. She was planning to retire in September. Rest in Power, Juletta.
“When she came to work she was there to work, no time for play, very witty and up front about everything. She was a very political woman and would always reminisce about how St Joseph’s used to be” – Rochelle Humphrey, ER secretary.
Rest in power, Juletta.
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Maria Sigala
Maria Sigala was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, and healthcare worker.
Rest in power, Maria.
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Marcus McKesson
Marcus McKesson was a radiology tech at Kaiser Fresno, a father, a husband, a son, and a brother. He is described as a funny, charismatic, and caring person by those who knew him.
Rest in power, Marcus.
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Nancy Dieppa
Nancy was a devoted wife, mother, community member, and LVN from Community Hospital San Bernardino.
“Nancy, you opened your arms and welcomed me when I came to CHSB back in 2014. You were such a loving person who treated me like your daughter, and friend… We could always count on you for a good time and a great laugh. You took pride in being a Filipino woman and always told me about your culture you were so proud of how far you had come, and I loved that about you. You shared stories about being a nurse in Saudi Arabia and how you met your husband there. I will never forget the love you had for your daughter as we all watched her grow up – she was lucky to have you as her mother. Right before I left, I remember she had a baby boy and you couldn’t wait to share his pictures with us. You also could cook and never brought lunch for just one because you always wanted to feed the unit, lol. Your laugh, your commitment to patient care and your commitment to your friends and family will never be forgotten. It’s hard to imagine that you are no longer with us and you will be greatly missed. ” – Danielle Jackson.
Rest in power, Nancy
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Nenita Proctor
Nenita Proctor was an LVN at Kindred Hospital La Mirada. She was a lively, hardworking, generous, and compassionate woman who loved life and above all cherished God, her family, and her friends. Regardless of her personal struggles, she strived to see the good in each and every day. As with everything she did, she poured her heart and soul into nursing. She truly loved helping people and felt fulfilled serving others.
Rest in Power, Nenita.
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Rosa Luna
Rosa Luna was a dedicated EVS worker at Riverside Community Hospital for 25 years. She was one of the first people to step up and fight for her fellow co-workers as a steward.
Her love and happiness were spending time with her family. She was an avid gardener and anything she grew flourished. She is survived by her daughter Dora Reaza and her two grandchildren Rubie Reaza and Oscar Artero. She was 68 when she passed away on May 4, 2020.
“Thank you for your service, friendship, and most of all your conversations. Your fight may be over, rest assured ours has barely begun.” – Ray Valdivia, coworker.
Rest in power, Rosa.
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Sally Lara
Sally Lara was a mother, a grandmother, and wife who came out of retirement to work as a phlebotomist at HCA Healthcare Riverside and was devoted to helping others during the pandemic. She was an outspoken advocate for PPE when she and her co-workers weren’t supplied enough at the hospital.
Rest in power, Sally.
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Sarah Roncskevitz
Sarah Roncskevitz was a Kaiser medical social worker in the San Francisco Bay Area and passed away from COVID-19 on May 30. “If you knew Sarah, honor your memories by procrastinating, staying up too late, fighting for justice, listening to music loudly, planting sunflowers, wearing your damned mask…”
Rest in power, Sarah.
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Thong Nguyen
Thong was a proud EKG tech for 30 years. He even had a personal license plate that said “EKG MAN”. He enjoyed collecting Marilyn Monroe and US Olympics memorabilia, and was a big soccer fan. He had been both Employee of the Month and Employee of the Year at Garfield.
Rest in power, Thong.