(CNN) – When Candace and Terry Ayers received their second dose of the covid-19 vaccine in early March, it was a day of hope and excitement for the whole family.
“I took my parents to receive this second dose and we were all very excited,” his son Marc said. “We are a family that believes in science. We believe in masks and we believe in vaccines. We were ready to return to normalcy.”
But her mother, Candace Ayers, died nearly six months after a trip in July with her husband to Mississippi. His death certificate says he died of covid-19.
His obituary, in the local newspaper, State journal registrationIn Springfield, Illinois, he said in part:
“Candace Cay (Kruger) Ayers, 66, of Springfield, died September 3, 2021 at St. John’s Hospital in Springfield, IL. More than 4,531,799 people more infected with covid-19 preceded her in death. She was vaccinated, but other people who chose not to do so infected her. The cost was her life. “
Ayers believes her mother became infected when she visited Mississippi, a state where vaccination rates are among the lowest in the U.S.
“All of this could have been avoided,” Ayers said. “This could have been avoided with a few acts of kindness. They were in a state that had one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country. Receiving a vaccine and wearing a mask for others … if they had done that, she I would be here today. “
Mississippi has been completely vaccinated to 42% of its total population according to the state health department, making it one of the least vaccinated states in the country.
Because Candace had an underlying condition, her family doubted she was out of town.
“My mother had severe rheumatoid arthritis. We were always more concerned about her getting infected because she was immunocompromised,” Ayers said. “We were struggling to decide if they should have traveled. But things looked so good, and with them completely vaccinated, we just had no problem with them going to Mississippi. The delta variant had just hit the radar. cases of post-vaccination infections were rare at the time. Our worst nightmare came true. “
Post-vaccination cases occur when a fully vaccinated person becomes seriously ill or dies of covid-19. Deaths among fully vaccinated people are rare, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC).
Between early April and mid-July, during which time the delta variant was the dominant strain, fully vaccinated individuals accounted for 8% of all covid-19 cases, 8% of hospitalizations, and 9 % of deaths, according to a CDC study published earlier this month.
And Candace was especially vulnerable because she was older and had an underlying health problem. About 70 percent of post-vaccination cases that resulted in hospitalization occurred among adults age 65 and older, and approximately 87 percent of post-vaccination cases that resulted in death were among adults age 65 or older, according to CDC data. .
Ayers described the family as having difficulty processing what has happened and wants to find a way to inspire others to get vaccinated and wear masks. He believes that presenting the stark reality of the daily numbers of covid-19 deaths worldwide at the time of writing his obituary would make people pause to assimilate them.
“This was to illustrate that this is not just a contained problem in the United States, but it has a global impact,” he said. “My mother was a fighter. She kept fighting and fighting and fighting. We wanted to show a point.”
According to Ayers, they have received both positive and negative comments about the obituary.
“It’s been really wonderful to hear from friends and strangers about the obituary. Because of our history,” Ayers said, “people have told us they’re going to be vaccinated.”
“Of course, there are negative comments as well, but most have been positive.”
CNN’s Deidre McPhillips and Aya Elamroussi contributed to this report.