'Sassiness,' 'true grit' help 2 elderly patients survive covid-19 at Excela Frick Hospital

Everson’s James Toth and Yvonne Demagall of Mt. Pleasant are survivors.

At ages 89 and 92, respectively, each has survived a battle with cancer. And, now, after weeks in Excela Frick Hospital, each is at home with family recovering from coronavirus infections.

Dozens of hospital staff gathered Wednesday to celebrate with signs, balloons and pompoms as first Demagall and then Toth were discharged and reunited with loved ones in the hospital lobby.

Daughter Anita Oneal of Mt. Pleasant credits Demagall’s “sassy attitude” with seeing her through both health scares — including a bout with liver cancer in 2006.

“She had a third of her liver removed, but she did very well,” Oneal said. “That sassiness is what helped her kick cancer, and now she kicked covid-19.”

Traci Fick, vice president of patient care services at the hospital, noted neither patient had a confirmed negative covid test as of Wednesday, but “their physical strength has come back. They still need some help at home, but they’re well enough to be going home today.

“It’s a very exciting day for the Mt. Pleasant community.”

It was an emotional day for Demagall, Toth and their families — reunited after weeks of physical separation because of pandemic-related restrictions on visitors to the hospital.

Previous chats by phone and FaceTime couldn’t match the reunion of Demagall with daughters Oneal and Patty Rudnik of Mt. Pleasant — who will care for her mother at home, with help from visiting nurses. Demagall also was able once more to pet Lilly, her beloved Chihuahua.

Oneal credits the care provided by the Frick staff and, perhaps, divine intervention, with her mother’s improvement.

“At that age, I didn’t even know if she was going to make it home,” Oneal said.

A former beautician who retired from the local Lenox glassware plant, Demagall was admitted to the hospital in early April after a cough worsened. She then tested positive for covid-19.

Her condition “was up and down for almost three weeks,” Oneal said, noting that she became so weak at one point that she couldn’t feed herself. “It was very scary.”

Back in the familiar surroundings of home, it may be some time before Demagall can once more enjoy one of her favorite pastimes — traveling to casinos.

Toth: ‘Not today, covid’

A retired machinist who enjoys woodworking, Toth was employed at plants in Scottdale and Jeannette.

He’s recovering at the North Huntingdon home of daughter Cathy Majka, who embraced him Wednesday as he held a sign reading, “Not today, covid,” and was wheeled to an ambulance for the trip from the hospital.

Majka had limited contact with her father during his hospital stay because he has difficulty hearing and was in isolation.

“We were able to have some phone calls, but they were pretty one-sided,” she said.

Toth, who has diabetes and high blood pressure, survived bladder and prostate cancer a decade ago. His coronavirus infection landed him in Frick for 30 days, after he developed a persistent fever.

“The worst was when he had been on a ventilator for a few days and we had started hearing that his liver function and kidney function was starting to decline, and lung inflammation was increasing,” Majka said.

But, the following day, he resumed breathing unaided.

“Two days later, he started a strong upswing,” she said.

“We have the first floor pretty well set up for him, instead of sending him to skilled nursing for rehab,” Majka said of her home.

Toth’s wife, Mary Ellen, 88, is a resident at an area care home.

“He’s true grit and blue collar all the way,” Majka said of her father. “I’m just very proud of his tenacity and determination.”