‘You are always the best mama’: Heartbreaking moment woman says her final goodbye to her mother, 81, over the phone as she died in hospital from coronavirus
- Family from Massachusetts filmed a final phone call to their dying grandmother
- Francesca Onorato, 16, posted the footage on TikTok before the 81-year-old died
- Viral footage aims to raise awareness of the need to stay at home amid COVID-19
- The US has become the global epicenter for the coronavirus outbreak
- There have been more than 588,400 cases, and more than 23,600 deaths
- Learn more about how to help people impacted by COVID
A teenager has shared footage of her family’s emotional last phone call with their grandmother, shortly before she died from COVID-19.
Francesca Onorato, 16, from Natick, Massachusetts, has gone viral on TikTok, after she uploaded a video of her family speaking to her 81-year-old grandmother who had been living in a nursing home when she was diagnosed with coronavirus in April.
Speaking to Insider, Francesca revealed that her grandma was unable to respond on the phone because she was taking morphine – but the teenager said that being able to say goodbye still meant the world to the family.
‘Finding out she was positive [for COVID-19] really hurt me because I realized with her lung problems, she most likely would not survive, so I was devastated,’ Francesca shared.
Francesca Onorato, 16, from Massachusetts, shared footage of her family saying goodbye to their grandmother before she died from COVID-19. Pictured: Francesca’s mother Linda, speaking to the 81-year-old who passed away on 9 April
The heart-wrenching clip shows Francesca’s mother Linda, speaking to their dying grandmother in present tense to keep her from fearing death. Pictured: Francesca’s sister Ava in the emotional TikTok video
The heart-wrenching clip which has been viewed over 15 million times, shows Francesca’s mother Linda telling the 81-year-old that she will ‘talk to her tomorrow’, speaking to her about the future to keep her from feeling frightened about dying.
‘I love you mom so much OK. You’re the best mommy in the whole world, always the best mama. I love you, OK honey and Lucy says hi too. Alright,’ Linda says in the emotional clip.
‘Love you mom, you have a good night OK. Alright mom, talk to you tomorrow. Love you, goodnight.’
Francesca’s sister Ava, struggles to hold back tears throughout the call.
Speaking about their grandmother’s passing, Francesca said: ‘My grandma was an awesome person, she accepted me through thick and thin.
‘She was always so kind and never hurt her family. She was the most genuine person I knew and would always be completely honest with you.’
Francesca (pictured) urged others to contact their loved ones, because she was grateful to have spoken to her grandmother before she passed
‘Please call your loved ones and say you love them. I’m just thankful the last thing I said to my grandma was I love you. Rest in peace,’ she added on TikTok.
Linda confessed she was ‘taken back’ by the response to the video, which saw them receive a stream of comments from people offering their condolences.
Many social media users have cited the tear-jerking viral video as a reason why people should be staying home throughout the pandemic.
‘I honestly can’t even watch the video that’ll make me SO sad, but praying for your family and I hope people start to take this more seriously,’ wrote one.
Another said: ‘God please just stay at home Please. I’m crying. The world is in so much pain. People are dying’
A third added: ‘I am so sorry. I’m glad you all got to have a final goodbye with her.’
A stream of TikTok users commented on the video, urging others to stay at home throughout the pandemic
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