PAXTON — An 18-year-old Paxton-Buckley-Loda High School student contracted COVID-19 last week but appeared to be getting better, his mother said Monday.
Kim Hoopingarner of rural Paxton said her son, Joey, first exhibited symptoms of the virus last Tuesday.
“I took him to the doctor a week ago tomorrow,” she said. “He and I were both sick. I was not as bad as him.”
Things started to go bad for him Sunday afternoon. He told his mother he was having trouble breathing. He was taken to Gibson Area Hospital. His oxygen level continued to get worse, and he was given a breathing tube.
“They worked on him over an hour. He went into cardiac arrest” and died, she said.
Joey Hoopingarner was a well-liked student.
“He was an outgoing, caring, joyful, likeable kid,” his mother said. “He was always caring for everybody else. He never worried about himself. He was autistic, but he tried his best.”
Lisa Allen, who taught Joey in her special-education class at PBL, said anyone who didn’t know him would think he was shy. But it didn’t take long for him to warm up.
“He was very funny, outgoing, a great friend,” Allen said. “He got along with the other kids. He enjoyed cooking, playing games, solving puzzles. He really liked PE, math and cooking.”
Allen said Joey was not happy if he had to miss school. He looked forward to it.
She said things are difficult around Paxton these days. Last week, she lost a close friend, Elizabeth “Liz” Bowen, who was 44.
Megan Reutter, Ford County Public Health community health educator, said the county has seen “a steady uptick” in COVID-19 cases — an average of three cases every day.
“It might not seem like a lot. When you get the new cases and take into consideration close contacts, we’ve seen an increase in cases since April,” she said.
Reutter said it’s difficult to say where the increases are coming from. She said the health department works closely with area schools.
The bulk of the new cases are happening in people 25 and younger, Reutter said, most of whom recover from the virus without any problem.
Reutter said the health department was sending condolences to the Hoopingarner family.
In a letter to students Monday, PBL Superintendent Cliff McClure said counseling services were made available to high school students Monday and will remain so for as long as needed.
Joey was one of seven children of Kim and Ernie Hoopingarner.
His father described Joey as a “happy boy.”
“He tried to get along with everyone,” he said. “He was really loved by all of his teachers and his friends in his class. He was a great kid.”
Hoopingarner said he and his son liked to play video games together and watch movies. Joey enjoyed Pokemon, SpongeBob SquarePants, video games and camping.
He said he and his son were close, but Joey was especially close to his mother.
Lisa Hoopingarner said her son loved animals. He had a couple of cats.
He was careful around other people.
“He hardly went anywhere, and when he did, he wore a mask,” she said.
She said next year he planned to be in the work study program at Paxton Hardware and Rental.
Allen said Joey paid attention to detail in class. On occasion, she or an aide would purposely make a mistake, writing the wrong date or some other incorrect information on the board. Joey loved checking to make sure everything was correct.
“He loved playing games and solving puzzles. He was observant and paid attention. He would be quick to call you out if something ... wasn’t right,” Allen said.
Funeral arrangements for Joey are pending at Baier Family Funeral Services, Paxton.
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