Arnold Herrera died on Sunday at UI Health. His relatives said he had no underlying condition that they knew of, and they are still surprised at how quickly his condition has worsened.
Herrera was a helper for whom the sky was indeed the limit.
“A lot of energy, just … ‘I’m going to do it because I’m going to do it’, because I can do it. That ‘I can’ attitude,” said his brother, Pablo Portilla.
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Arnold’s brother said his younger brother never saw a problem he didn’t try to fix – including in the garage, where he worked with cars for a living.
But on Saturday, Herrera’s generous spirit was carried away by COVID-19.
“I kept praying that he would get better because I knew he was always, you know, strong,” said Portilla. “It was not in God’s plan.”
Pablo said Arnold was diagnosed last week and was recovering at home, but his condition worsened hours after playing in the new year.
“He told us ‘Happy New Year’ and, unfortunately, after us, he had complications for an entire day,” said Portilla. “He was in pain and we took him to the hospital and ready.”
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Arnold played guitar at his church in Little Village and graduated from Benito Juarez High School, where he was active in the junior ROTC program.
His death came with a warning that his family expects others to pay attention.
“It doesn’t discriminate against age. It just happens. And we all have to be careful. We shouldn’t think, ‘Oh, yes, because I’m young, this isn’t going to happen to me’, how else,” he said.
Arnold Herrera would have turned 20 in March. Records show that he is the eleventh person in Illinois under the age of 20 to die from COVID-19.
Pablo Portilla is accepting donations in memory of his brother on GoFundMe.
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