As Florida cases continue to sky rocket with no decline in sight, residents all over Florida are being shaken up. Lionel B from the Lionel B Show made headlines after purchasing his mother her dream car in 2019. The joy only lasted briefly as his mother Barbara Benniefield, 67 years old was diagnosed with COVID-19 and passed away just two days later. She was taken to Tampa General Hospital, where they tested her for the virus, and quickly sent her home, untreated with just medication. A common case nowadays as hospitals aren’t accommodating patients.
“I’m deeply saddened at the loss of my best friend, my mother, we talked every single day multiple times a day” said Lionel B. Many other celebrities has also experienced loss during this pandemic. NBA player Karl-Anthony Towns lost his mother back in April after her battle with the virus. “This is a very serious disease that we should not take light, my mom was a fighter, and she fought to the very end” said the YouTube star. Donald Trump’s recent denial of the increase in cases in the U.S. has caused distrust in his presidency, as cases are clearly climbing and affecting millions of people.
“No son should ever have to bare hearing their mother in so much pain and agony, while she labored to speak to me”. said Lionel B. “Tampa General Hospital, could’ve done so much more, they could’ve given her a ventilator or anything…I feel like most of the doctors and nurses don’t care, they just don’t want to get it, very selfish healthcare workers we have.” said Lionel. Lionel B had just enlisted popular R&B singer Kenny Lattimore to sing her favorite song “For You” via FaceTime, it gave her a smile and she was found deceased by his stepfather 6 hours later. As the cases in Florida total 302k, the U.S. government has been ridiculed by other nations for allowing this pandemic to spiral out of control, and not being truthful to the American people. Lionel B also has an aunt, Jackie White of Panama City, the younger sister of his mother that is currently hospitalized with COVID-19 as well. We are praying for Lionel B and his family in their time of mourning.
