- April 23, 2024
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This time last year, Marissa Smith did not personally know anyone who had died from COVID-19. She cannot say the same today.
On the morning of July 8, Smith's 43-year-old sister Christina Tocco, of Ormond Beach, died at AdventHealth Daytona Beach, leaving behind her 15-year-old special needs daughter and 11-year-old son. For her family, everything happened very quickly, so much so that none of them had the chance to say goodbye.
Since the start of the pandemic, 53,580 people have died in the state of Florida due to COVID-19. Of that number, 1,369 have been Volusia County residents, according to data by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But the reality of those statistics have a greater impact on families like Smith's.
“COVID is serious, and it’s not just a numbers game," Smith said. "It’s something that actually affects and impacts real families in really devastating ways, and that’s something that shouldn’t be taken lightly.”
Smith's family was small, but close-knit growing up. It was just Smith, Tocco, their older sister Laurie, and their father, who died in 2016. Each sister, of course, has their own distinct personality, but Tocco was the loudest, Smith recalled fondly. They are half-Italian, she said, but Tocco was probably "200% Italian."
“She had a very big personality," Smith said. "Even strangers didn’t feel like strangers when they were around her because she was so open and welcoming.”
A server at DB Pickles for 15 years, Tocco was a staple in the restaurant, according to Smith. She was so charismatic that people often requested to be served by her.
For most of her life, Tocco was a single mom. But, that never stopped her from giving her children the best life she could. On a server's salary, she made sure their birthday parties were exactly what they wanted, that they had the shoes they wanted to start school, and as a family, made time for vacations.
In 2015, Tocco met the man who would become her fiancé, and they became a blended family for the next five years before he asked her to marry him. The couple was supposed to wed in 2020, but their wedding was postponed because of the pandemic.
When Tocco was admitted to the hospital, Smith and her family were on vacation halfway across the country in Arizona. They were due to return to their home in Ormond Beach on July 7, and that morning, Smith woke up to a text from her sister's fiancé informing her Tocco had been admitted to the hospital and had been placed on a ventilator.
A week prior, Tocco's daughter had told Smith that her mom had tested positive for COVID-19, but at the time, Smith hadn't been too concerned. After all, her sister was healthy.
But that changed when she read the text that morning.
“I had this sense of dread," Smith said. "I had this feeling that came over me that I’ve never had in my life, and the feeling was that it’s not OK, and it’s not going to be OK.”
Smith and her family made it home four hours before Tocco died. A woman of faith, she believes this was God's first indication that He was there to support her family in their moment of grief. Her sister died at a time when Smith was in town, and could take charge of the situation.
And her main worry? Making sure her sister's children, Sophia and Sebastian, Smith's niece and nephew, continue living their lives the way her sister had planned.
Tocco started a GoFundMe page on July 13 to fundraise for the future needs of Tocco's children. Within the first minute, she had received her first $100 donation. The page has since raised almost $24,000. Smith said she is grateful for each and every one of them. She invited all who donated to her sister's Celebration of Life, held at Tomoka Christian Church on July 24. The success of the fundraiser shows how many people loved her, Smith said.
“That shows how many people she touched and it makes me feel more secure, because at the end of the day, no matter what, these kids are going to be taken care of by my husband and I," Smith said.
The dollars raised will go toward addressing the needs of Sofia and Sebastian, who remain at home with their mother's fiancé, the only father figure either have ever known.
“It is to make sure that their lives go on exactly the way my sister would have insisted," said Smith, her voice laden with tears. "Period. And if I can do anything to honor her and her legacy, I think that’s the best thing I can do.”
Want to help? Visit https://gofund.me/393ec93d
