19-year-old Navarro College student dies from COVID-19

A young woman from Freestone County who was about to start a new semester at Navarro College died just weeks after contracting COVID-19.

Breanna Gray's family says she was a healthy 19-year-old before the diagnosis. Nobody in the family was vaccinated when they all caught COVID. It's a choice they now regret.

Breanna was in the hospital for less than two weeks. One morning, she declined. And in a matter of hours, she was gone.

Tabitha Gray’s final time talking to her daughter, Breanna, was over the phone trying to calm her down. 

"You just hear her screaming through the mask for me, and that was the last time," Tabitha said. "And the last voice I heard is her yelling for me in her mask."

Tabitha says Breanna was terrified. Doctors just told her she had to go on a ventilator. 

"For me not being there to help my baby or be there is the worst feeling in the entire world," Tabitha said.

The 19-year-old sent photos from her hospital bed hoping she would survive. 

"No underlying health conditions whatsoever," Tabitha said. "Nothing. Healthy."

Breanna was set to start this year’s classes at Navarro College this month. Her dream was to own a salon. Instead, COVID-19 took over her household. 

Breanna tested positive July 31, and she was in the hospital a week later. She died on Aug. 19.

"We never thought it would happen," Tabitha said. "I never thought my baby would go before me." 

Tabitha and her husband also tested positive. Nobody in the family at the time was vaccinated. It’s a decision she says she regrets. 

I feel like It’s my fault," Tabitha said. "I should’ve forced it." 

According to the DFW Hospital Council Monday, an estimated 95% of all COVID-19 patients in North Texas are unvaccinated. 

"I shouldn’t have let other people in my head or life get to me," Tabitha said. "I should’ve done what I needed to do to protect my family."

The Gray family’s home is now filled with flowers from Breanna’s funeral over the weekend. But to Tabitha, it’s empty. 

"Our house is so quiet now," she said. "It’s not a game. COVID is not a game." 

The entire Gray family now all has appointments for their second shot scheduled in September.