A gay married couple has died from
complications related to COVID-19, the disease caused by the new
coronavirus.
Phillip and Anthony Tsai-Brooks died
suddenly and just two days apart in the same hospital.
The first to pass was Phillip, who
owned a salon. He died on Easter Sunday of a coronavirus-related
heart attack. Anthony, a council member in Live Oaks, Texas and an
Army veteran, died on Tuesday.
Live Oaks Mayor Mary M. Dennis honored
the men in a Facebook tribute, though she failed to mention how they
were related.
“It is with a heavy heart and deep
sadness that Live Oak City Council, administrative staff and the
entire Live Oak community mourn the passing of Live Oak City
Councilmember Anthony Brooks,” Dennis wrote. “Councilman Brooks
will be greatly missed by all who knew him.”
“In addition, the city lost another
valuable member of the community. We also mourn the loss of EDC
Citizen Director Phillip Tsai-Brooks. Phillip was a valued member of
the city’s Economic Development Corporation and brought a unique
perspective to the board. Phillip was the owner of a salon in San
Antonio and worked hard to make it a successful small business. The
void in the leadership of the council and corporation will be
notable. We are forever grateful for both Anthony’s and Phillip’s
service to our Live Oak Community and to our country. May God Bless
their family and all who were blessed to call both men 'friend,'”
she wrote.
Speaking with local
media, Alfred and Robert Tsai, Phillip's brothers, said that
Phillip was the first to be hospitalized. He was on a ventilator in
an ICU bed. Days later Anthony was found at home unresponsive by his
mother-in-law. He was admitted to the same ICU ward.
Tsai's mother, who lived with the
couple in San Antonio, has also tested positive for the virus.
Alfred and Robert Tsai said that they
were heartbroken because their mother was in isolation as she grieved
the loss of her son and his husband with whom she traveled
extensively.