104-Year-Old Celebrates Birthday After Beating Coronavirus

As the coronavirus pandemic forces us to enact rigorous self-isolation procedures, the safety of elderly people is paramount as they are particularly vulnerable to the effects of this terrible disease.

104-year-old William “Bill” Lapschies is an Oregon-born WWII veteran who recently beat the coronavirus, not long after his 104th birthday.

The amazing veteran has two grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, and five great-great-grandchildren, all of whom were elated to hear of his good health!

Upon first being diagnosed with coronavirus, Lapschies' family were concerned that the veteran may not make it to his 104th birthday; however, on Wednesday, Lapschies reached the amazing milestone!

Lapschies has since also been deemed well enough for his family and friends to come to the assisted living complex where he lives, and wish him a happy birthday. The guests all practiced appropriate social distancing measures of course.

Lapschies granddaughter Jamie Yutzie asked him how he survived the illness while wishing him a happy birthday, and Lapschies replied, "I don’t know. It just went away. Sit out here and you can get rid of anything," according to Oregon Public Broadcasting.

And, when asked how it felt to be 104, Lapschies said, "Pretty good. I made it!"

Two residents to have come down with the illness have since died, the Huffington Post reports. Lapschies was also apparently treated with hydroxychloroquine, a malaria drug.

Lapschies' son-in-law Jim Brown also hopes that the story will help inspire other people through this time, saying, "We’re hoping this goes out to all the people out there who are sick and have this problem, if Bill can survive this at 104, anybody can. Step up, you can do it".

As a lot of us fear for ourselves and our loved ones at this unsettling time, hopefully, Lapschies' story will show that there is hope for elderly relatives in the unfortunate circumstances that they contract this disease. However, above all, it is crucial to keep practicing social distancing, and then together we can get through this dark time.

h/t: Huffington Post