Out Olympian Gus Kenworthy surfaced
yesterday after a six-week absence from social media to reveal that
the coronavirus pandemic has hit his family hard.
The 28-year-old Kenworthy said in an
Instagram post that a nephew and a niece have had coronavirus
symptoms and had to be hospitalized, though he did not say that they
had been diagnosed with COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.
“We had some serious scares this past
month and it's put into perspective, more than ever before, the
importance of family,” Kenworthy captioned a photo of himself with
his dog Birdy. “My 9-month-old nephew, Bodhi, had a bad cough/fever
and started having trouble breathing. He ended up being flight for
life'd to Denver Children's Hospital to be put on a respirator and
spent a week in the ICU.”
“Shortly after he returned home, my
4-year-old niece, Bobbie, fell ill and had to be rushed to the same
hospital to undergo two emergency surgeries. They're both finally
home again and recovering!”
“I'm incredibly thankful and forever
grateful to our healthcare workers on the front line of this
pandemic,” he added.
Kenworthy reminded followers that
reaching out to family and friends during this time was crucial.
“Swallow your pride and text a friend
saying 'I'm feeling really down, can we talk?' I will help,” he
said.
Kenworthy announced that he had joined
Cameo, where celebrities interact by video with fans, to raise funds
for first responders and would “match whatever we raise up to
$10,000.”
“Let's #BeatTheVirus [heart emoji],”
he concluded.