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We’re continuing with our remembrances of those lost in the pandemic. (If you’d like to share memories of a Californian who has died, please email us at CAtoday@nytimes.com.)
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Today’s piece, about Rosary Celaya Castro-Olega, was written by Annette Choi:
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It was hard to miss Rosary Celaya Castro-Olega when she made her nursing rounds on the eighth floor of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center’s south tower in Los Angeles.
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Decked out in purple scrubs, her personality was on full display.
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“Even after 12-hour shifts, she made it to birthdays and anniversaries,” her daughter, Tiffany Olega, said. “And she was always on the dance floor.”
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Mrs. Castro-Olega worked as a registered nurse for 37 years before retiring in 2017. She continued to volunteer at short-staffed hospitals in Los Angeles County. And when the pandemic hit, she showed up without hesitation.
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Her daughter said it was not known if her mother was infected through contact with patients. But in mid-March, Mrs. Castro-Olega went to the emergency room with a bad cough and fever and tested positive for Covid-19. She spent her final days on a ventilator in intensive care at the Panorama City Medical Center and died on March 29. She was 63.
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“I just can’t believe she’s gone,” her best friend, Annie Neal, said. “I have the urge to text her, but I can’t.”
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Mrs. Castro-Olega was always ready for fun, whether it was riding roller coasters at Disneyland or cheering at Kobe Bryant’s last N.B.A. game — dressed in purple gear, naturally.
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“She’d do anything for anybody,” Ms. Neal said. “She’s our purple angel.”
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California Today goes live at 6:30 a.m. Pacific time weekdays. Tell us what you want to see: CAtoday@nytimes.com. Were you forwarded this email? Sign up for California Today here and read every edition online here.
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Jill Cowan grew up in Orange County, graduated from U.C. Berkeley and has reported all over the state, including the Bay Area, Bakersfield and Los Angeles — but she always wants to see more. Follow along here or on Twitter.
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California Today is edited by Julie Bloom, who grew up in Los Angeles and graduated from U.C. Berkeley.
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