RIVERSIDE, Calif. – As a new grandmother, Pamela Streeter-Laudermill was determined to put up the fight of her life against COVID-19. 

“I had to keep on going. I had too much to live for not enough to die for,” said Streeter-Laudermill, proudly showing off a photo of her six-month-old granddaughter on her phone. 

Steeter-Laudermill fell alarmingly ill in early May and was cared for by her daughter, Tara.  Both ended up testing positive for the novel coronavirus.

“I was like, 'No, that’s my best friend. Not no COVID, I’m coming mama, to the rescue!'” said Tara Streeter-Laudermill.  

They can laugh about it now, but at her worst, Pamela was hospitalized for days at Riverside Community Hospital where she is so grateful to the nurses and doctors who helped her fight through the difficult times. 

During the height of her battle against the virus, she thought she wouldn’t make it.

“It felt like it was death. It felt horrible,” said Pamela. “The more my daughter kept on saying, ‘Mom you’ve gotta eat you’re gonna die. You’ve gotta drink you’re gonna die.’ And I couldn’t eat. I couldn’t drink.”

She said COVID-19 was the most painful illness of her life, and suspects she was a high-risk patient due to underlying health conditions. 

Now, Pamela packs extra hand sanitizers and masks to hand out to anyone not taking the safety precautions seriously. 

“I’m trying to save people who don’t know, who need to listen,” she said. “Because if you don’t, I guarantee you’re going to have a GoFundMe account and there will be someone who will be deceased.”

Even though she is now free of the virus, Pamela is remaining social distanced from her new granddaughter just in case. It worries her that the cases in Southern California are surging. 

“Don’t just throw in the towel and be in groups,” Pamela said. “You have to wait, be patient, because patience can give you life.” 

And with the holiday weekend, Pamela hopes everyone takes her story to heart and protects themselves for the sake of the people they love.