Vaccinated Las Vegas flight attendant dies from COVID, mother says

A Las Vegas formation attendant for Southwest Airlines has died from COVID-19, contempt being afloat vaccinated, his parent said Friday.

Maurice Reginald “Reggie” Shepperson, 36, spent much than a period astatine Henderson Hospital earlier his death. His mother, Dawn Shepperson-Bernard, of Las Vegas, said she was notified of her son’s decease aboriginal Tuesday.

“It shows however speedy beingness tin change,” Shepperson-Bernard said. “How you tin physique a beingness for yourself and however rapidly your beingness tin conscionable beryllium taken away. Everything that you worked for, truthful hard, it tin conscionable fundamentally beryllium near successful ruins. Your household near successful ruins.”

Southwest said Friday that Shepperson worked for the hose for astir 9 years. His parent said Reggie antecedently worked for AirTran Airways and had been a formation attendant since astir 2007.

“We are heartbroken implicit the loss,” Southwest said successful an email. “The Southwest Family is supporting each other, and our Employee’s family, during this hard time. Out of respect for Reggie’s family, we bash not person further details to share.”

Shepperson-Bernard said her lad was her anchor successful life. She recalled how, arsenic a 6-year-old successful New York City, helium erstwhile came to her during a tumultuous clip and told the azygous ma not to interest due to the fact that God would support her.

”One connection helium gave maine arsenic a child, helium said, ‘Mom they can’t wounded you,’” she said successful a telephone interrogation Friday. “I said, ‘Are you sure? Why bash you accidental that?’

“‘Because God said your tone is excessively pure,’” she quoted her lad arsenic saying. “That conscionable lifted a load disconnected of me.”

This affectional enactment and loving enslaved betwixt parent and lad continued passim his life. Reggie graduated from precocious schoolhouse successful Georgia, past moved to Las Vegas for his occupation arsenic a formation attendant.

“He loved it,” she recalled. “Excellent astatine it. So professional. No substance what the concern helium could stay calm.”

The parent and lad traveled to Hawaii successful precocious June. Both were tested repeatedly for COVID-19 with each trial results coming backmost negative. Shepperson, however, became sick upon returning home. He instantly quarantined, past tested affirmative for COVID-19, his parent said. Reggie’s parent would permission him nutrient and drinks astatine his doorway arsenic helium quarantined.

“He said, ‘I person pain, a batch of symptom everywhere,” she recalled, adding “he was truthful sick helium couldn’t get up.”

On July 7, Reggie abruptly drove himself to the Henderson Hospital exigency room.

“He said helium couldn’t breathe,” Shepperson-Bernard said. “He got into an mishap successful the parking batch (of the hospital,) up against the sidewalk. He couldn’t breathe, and helium was retired of it.”

He spent the adjacent four-plus weeks successful the infirmary with overmuch of it connected a ventilator. Shepperson-Bernard said she talked with her lad regular connected FaceTime, praying with him each day, each “hour connected the hour,” she said, but her visits to him were constricted due to the fact that of coronavirus precautions.

“He would speech erstwhile helium could,” Shepperson-Bernard said. “With the oxygen, helium couldn’t bash overmuch talking. He would springiness maine a thumbs-up erstwhile helium could.”

A person of Reggie’s, Marcia Hildreth, created a GoFundMe connected Friday to assistance wage for ceremonial expenses.

“His personality, wit and wit were conscionable a fewer characteristics that everyone adored,” she wrote. “He was 1 of the kindest astir giving radical I’ve ever known. If you needed him, he’d beryllium determination with nary questions asked.”

Shepperson-Bernard said she wants her lad to beryllium known arsenic a loving, caring antheral who spent his beingness giving to others.

Contact Glenn Puit by email astatine gpuit@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GlennatRJ connected Twitter.