COVID-19 takes the life of Jackson couple who did it all together



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Frank Witsil

| Detroit Free Press

This obituary is part of “We Will Remember,” a series about those we have lost to the coronavirus.

Leslie and Patricia McWaters – Jackson natives who were married for almost 50 years – did “almost everything together,” relatives said. They danced together. They watched their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren grow up together. And in the end, they contracted the coronavirus and died together.

Leslie, better known to friends and family as LD, and Pat, whom relatives have said to be “definitely the boss,” died at the same time, 4:23 pm last Tuesday, at Henry Ford Allegiance Health in Jackson. They were 75 and 78, respectively.

“It’s no surprise that they went to be with the Lord together in the same minute,” their obit said at the funeral home. “The hospital staff who looked after them, as they lost their battle with COVID, said they were too close to call. They registered their deaths at exactly the same time.”

But, the obit added, “Those of us who know them, know that mom went first and said, ‘LD, time to go!’ “

Their story is both romantic and tragic as more than 9,000 Michiganders have died from the pandemic since March and more than 350,000 people have contracted the virus, including Wayne County Sheriff Benny Napoleon, who is on a ventilator a week after his hospitalization.

A vaccine is expected to be available in the state by the end of the month.

But for many it is too late.

One of the couple’s daughters, Joanna Sisk, said her parents likely contracted the virus while eating out. Sisk said she would have liked to have stayed at home, but her mom and dad didn’t think being locked up all the time was their life.

However, Sisk said after getting sick, they regretted not being more careful.

They went to the hospital together, Sisk said, and within a week they “went to heaven together.”

“People should be worried, and they should be concerned and take this seriously,” Sisk said of the coronavirus. “It’s not difficult, when you have to run to Meijer to put on a mask and do the things that need to be done. I don’t want another family to have to go through what our family has had to endure.”

On Wednesday April 16, 1973, they made their marriage work despite – or perhaps because they “were polar opposites,” according to the obit. LD was a truck driver and Pat was a nurse. LD was “fun loving”. Pat was “no nonsense”.

They first met at Julie’s Bar & Grill in Jackson and have since loved going dancing there.

A veteran of the United States Navy Reserves and a member of the Lions Club, LD has spent his life hauling a variety of things, including asphalt and cheesecakes. He retired from Hendrickson Trucking, but his real specialty, according to his family, was making his famous strawberry drink for chili.

He “had more friends than anyone could count and he loved them all very much,” his family said. Some of his favorite – and irreverent – expressions included, “It’s colder than a digger’s ass!” and “It’s too far from your heart to kill you!”

Pat worked at Foote Allegiance Hospital for 35 years as a registered nurse in the operating room. After her retirement, she kept in touch with her colleagues. She was the best friend of her sisters, her sister-in-law and her daughters.

In the summer, the couple organized family parties at the pool. Relatives said Pat “had made too much food.”

They also enjoyed driving their Corvette 59s to auto shows and meeting up with family and friends, and at the end of the summer they would go out on a family canoe to Evart every year. They also enjoyed spending their retirement watching their grandchildren grow up.

Every Tuesday, they look after their great-granddaughter.

Read more:

Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine could be in Michigan by December 12

Wayne County Sheriff Napoleon on a ventilator during the fight against COVID-19

LD is survived by his brother, Claud “Stan” McWaters Jr .; and Pat, by his siblings, Sandy Hixon, Jerry (Gaye) Sipes, Sonny (Erline) Sipes and Sherry (Al) Hedrick; and brother-in-law, Phil Hendricks Sr.

Together they are survived by another daughter, Susan Brewer; three grandchildren, Chelsea Loker, Keaton Brewer and Erika (Ben) Rickman; six great-grandchildren, Maxx, Mia, Arbor, Lyla, Emma and Nola; several nieces and nephews.

The couple were cremated. A service, the family said, will take place in the spring or summer.

Arrangements are made by the Desnoyer funeral home. In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate contributions to the Humane Society or the United States Disaster Relief Fund or the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

One more thing, so that their story doesn’t end on an entirely sad note.

Pat might have been “the boss”, but LD was the “king of liners”. So we’ll give him the last word on his wife, at least the way his kids remember it: he said she was “the most beautiful woman ever” – adding: “My boy, is -Did she look good in shorts and off you go? -go boots! “

Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or [email protected]. If you have a family member or close friend who has died from COVID-19 and would like to share their story, please visit our Memorial Wall and select “Share a Story”.

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