Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan of Minnesota announced the passing of her older brother, Ron, to the coronavirus on Sunday, March 22, 2020. In a post on social media, she said he was the second COVID-19 death in Tennessee, and was more than just a “statistic.”
“I’ll remember a loving, older brother, uncle, father, and husband,” Flanagan, a citizen of the White Earth Nation, wrote. “Ron was a tough-as-nails Marine who was a big teddy bear on the inside. He never left my dad’s side during his final weeks and took care of everyone else in the way only he could.”
“Several weeks ago, Ron was diagnosed with cancer,” Flanagan added. “His immune system was compromised and he contracted COVID-19. He was put in a medically induced coma and placed on a ventilator. He fought it as hard as he could but it was simply too much for his body. THIS is why we must #StayHome.”
Flanagan noted that their father, Marvin Manypenny, passed away two months ago. He was 72, Native News Online repoted. His birthday would have been on Saturday, another post on social media read.