Woman mourns loss of sister, an avid Oakland A's fan, to COVID

OAKLAND, Calif. - The family of a woman from Oakland who died of complications from the coronavirus is sharing her story. They're hoping it may save some lives.

They say Heidi Brevet got vaccinated, but then made a costly mistake.

Her sister Erica Brevet-Stott says the medical staff at Kaiser Oakland did everything they could to try to save her life, but that the 61-year old died one week ago Monday. 

"She was a great sister," says Brevet-Stott as she holds a cut-out of her late sister Heidi, that she is still in shock over the loss of her only sibling. 

She suspects Heidi, an avid Oakland A's fan, contracted the coronavirus during a trip with friends to Arizona for spring training.

"They took what they thought were a lot of safety precautions," says Brevet-Stott. 

She says Heidi received her single dose Johnson and Johnson shot March 10th. A day later, she drove to Palm Springs and then to Arizona. 

Heidi returned home nine days later and was not feeling well. She had difficulty breathing.

Her sister drove her to the hospital where she had ups and downs, but was eventually put on a ventilator.

Heidi died last Monday, less than a month after she went into the hospital.

"When she was in the hospital, she says it was the worst thing that had ever happened to her was getting coronavirus." Brevet-Stott says she suspects Heidi contracted the coronavirus from one of the handful of people who were part of her social bubble and attended spring training with her.

"We are getting immunized for an infection that is active, which means we can be exposed to this infection if we go out too soon," says Dr. Monica Gandhi, UCSF professor of medicine. 

She says it can take as long as four weeks for the Johnson and Johnson vaccine to be fully effective, "It's not like a medication that works right away. It is a vaccine that requires your immune system to work to rev up, to take time and it takes time."

The Oakland A's paid tribute to the longtime season ticket holding during a game, announcing on-air, "Die hard green and gold faithful Heidi Brevet we lost recently."

Brevet-Stott says her sister opened her heart and home to friends, that she treated them as her family, leaving a void in the hearts of many.

"I want everybody to get the vaccine and continue to wear a mask and socially distance till this thing is gone completely," Brevet-Stott says there is added pain in losing her sister when the pandemic is nearing its end.

They were looking forward to taking a vacation together.