Healthy 35-year-old Midlothian man with no underlying conditions dies of COVID-19

MIDLOTHIAN, Texas - Family and friends are grieving the death of a Midlothian father of five. The man's family wants to share how bad and how fast the virus can get.

Family members say 35-year-old Matt Law was an overall healthy man. His battle with COVID-19 lasted less than a month. Now, his widow wants others to know his story.

Jennifer Law says her husband lived an active healthy life with no medical conditions. He then came down with a fever, tested positive for COVID-19 and was unable to recover.

Matt was an army veteran who served two tours of duty in Iraq. He was an active father of five children ranging in age from 11 to 1.

Jennifer said they took COVID-19 seriously but never imagined it could end one of their lives.

“At first we said this is a lot like the flu. We’ve had the flu,” she said.

Matt law was a bus mechanic for Ennis ISD.

“Matt was a big proponent of taking care of himself. Healthy. No underlying conditions whatsoever. He was happy to go to the doctor and get checked out for anything,” Jennifer said.

Matt came down with a fever and then tested positive for COVID-19 on Oct. 31.

“His symptoms were tame at first. He had a fever that gave it away,” Jennifer said. “he said he didn’t feel very well. He said it will be fine. I said no, let’s get tested.”

Matt did not have a cough and was recovering at home, but then he suddenly got worse. Jennifer says he couldn’t stand or breathe. So the VA referred him to Methodist Mansfield.

“They said COVID had torn apart his lungs. He will need to say for a while, probably a week,” Jennifer recalled.

Matt got out of the ICU but then got worse again.

“The doctors said this can happen to anyone and this is a testament to that,” Jennifer said.

The law family itself is an example of the different ways the virus affects people.

“I only lost sense of taste and smell. That was it,” Jennifer said.

Their oldest child had a fever and was tired, while the three youngest children were asymptomatic.

“The pain of losing a spouse is indescribable,” Jennifer said. “I cry in the shower and then think, ‘Okay, Jennifer. You have five kids. Get it together.’”

Jennifer says she is thankful for the support from the community. She hopes her family's story can serve as a warning to others.

“I need people to know and understand you are not safe from this,” she said. “Don’t live life in fear, but take precautions necessary.”

While young people are much more likely to recover from COVID-19 without any medical treatment, Dallas County reports that of all cases requiring hospitalization, two-thirds of patients have been under 65 years old.