Baby Ashton was born on February 13: it was an emergency delivery because Jiménez was fighting COVID. His mother lost the battle, never having a chance to hold, in her arms, the baby she carried carefully for almost nine months.
Jimenez leaves behind his three boys: Jordan, a 15-year-old Christian, an 18-month-old Christian, baby Ashton. She also leaves behind her devastated husband, Chad Augustus.
“I try to stay strong … every day I want to let go of my emotions, but I try to stay strong for the kids and the family,” Augustus said.
The family has started a GoFundMe page to help their three boys start their lives, without the mother whom family and friends called “the tail of the reunion.”
“I’ve had so many experiences and memories with her – she’s always been by my side,” best friend Cynthia Sanchez said.
“I am very proud of her for the woman who became after having children: she dedicated her life to making sure her children were good,” her brother, John Jimenez, said.
Love still flows in the family: they all decided to let Jiménez’s heartbroken mother, Ashton’s grandmother, take the plunge to take care of him. They say it relieves her sadness at losing her daughter.
“So now we just have to celebrate her life every day,” said her sister, Jacqueline Diaz.
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