How Two Journalism Schools, a Nonprofit Newsroom and a Host of Other Partners Are Working Together to Find Every New Yorker Who Died Due to COVID
By: Columbia Journalism
Tags: Covid 19, Media, New York, Pandemic, Coronavirus

Participation

A key part of MISSING THEM is community engagement. On May 8, we launched a short form, asking people who have lost a relative, friend, coworker or neighbor to the coronavirus to share their story with us. We also have a hotline for folks to call in, and a questionnaire delivered via text when folks text “remember” to 73224.

So far, nearly 300 people have filled out our form, emailed, called or texted us. Our team of journalism students and fellows is contacting each person who writes in to set up an interview, gather photographs, funeral programs and craft a short obituary to honor each person.

Here are some stories we’ve told:

Lemuel Sison, who worked as a medical technician in Long Island, was one of the first to die from COVID-19. Luca Powell, a Newmark student and fellow at THE CITY, interviewed his daughter, Leighvanni who said Sison was a pillar of the Filipino-American community in Queens and helped people “without demanding anything in return.” Sison was just one of the many Filipinos in the frontline medical community to fall victim to the virus while keeping New Yorkers alive.

Lemuel Sison. Photo provided.

Gaetana Deserto died of COVID-19 on April 6 at the age of 63. Rosa Schwartzburg, a recent Columbia graduate and fellow from the Institute for Nonprofit News, interviewed Deserto’s son, Rocco, to learn more about her life. She was born in Sicily and moved to New York City as a teenager, where she built a career in healthcare administration, working as an insurance claims agent then as a desk attendant in a gastroenterology office. In recent years, when her husband’s health declined, Deserto served as a full time caregiver — always keeping a “hospital purse” ready with a change of clothes, a hairbrush and toothbrush in case he had to be rushed to the emergency room. “My mother would walk miles with two broken legs for anyone in her family,” Rocco Deserto said.

Gaetana Deserto. Photo provided.

Caitlin Antonios, another fellow from INN and graduate of Columbia’s Stabile program, wrote about Clinton Washington, a client advocate for the Bronx Freedom Fund. Washington worked tirelessly to help his clients post bail, keep track of court dates, secure transportation and income while they awaited trial. Washington, who died on May 6 at a Bronx hospital at age 40, was generous and had a passion for social justice, according to his colleagues.

Clinton Washington. Photo provided.

Fellow Caroline Leddy, a graduate student at the Newmark school, interviewed Patricia Rojas about her mother, Ana Ortiz. Ortiz, who immigrated to the United States from the Dominican Republic in the late 1960s, worked as a home health aide for people with developmental disabilities. Oritz, who had seven siblings, worked tirelessly to send money home and provide a Catholic education for her daughter. Ortiz and Rojas loved spending time together. “She never failed to tell me and she never failed to show me that she loved me,” Rojas said.

Ana Ortiz. Photo provided.

Fellow Frank DiFiore, who is also a graduate student at Newmark, interviewed Wayne Wong to learn more about his older brother, Fook Sheong Wong. The longtime Queens resident immigrated to the United States in the 1960s when he was 18, reuniting with his parents. He worked in laundromats and restaurants — some of the few businesses that welcomed Chinese-American workers without hesitation. Wong was a loving father to his children, Alex and Serena. He was also an avid mahjong player, according to his brother. “He played it whenever he had free time,” Wayne Wong said.

Fook Sheong Wong. Photo provided.

We’ve called or emailed more than a hundred other families so far. That could reach thousands and perhaps tens of thousands before we’re through.