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At 65 years old, Gwen Farley had a great deal to look forward to.

The mother of three adult children was also raising her grandson, 15-year-old Hunter. She’d cared for him since he was 2 years old.

Approaching retirement, she worked as a registered nurse at a long-term care facility in Coeur d’Alene.

It was there that Gwen is believed to have contracted COVID-19.

“She got a really bad version of it,” her sister Gayleen Holmes told The Press. “It’s a vicious illness.”

A family member brought meals to Gwen’s home while she quarantined. She was feeling poorly, Gayleen said, frequently short of breath. She wasn’t getting better.

Around midnight on Jan. 10, Gwen was rushed by ambulance to Kootenai Health. Her heart rate was elevated when she arrived at the hospital. She was intubated almost immediately.

When her condition did not improve, her family was faced with the difficult decision to withdraw life support. She was taken off the ventilator the evening of Jan. 22.

Gwen died early the next morning.

Her son, Justin Farley, was with her.

He recalled his mom’s hard work throughout her life. She juggled two jobs while attending nursing school and raising three children.

“She’s my hero,” he said.

In a word, Gayleen said, Gwen was generous — with her time, her money and her talents. She played multiple instruments, including piano, guitar and banjo, and shared her musical skills with her church community at Journey Ministries in Hayden.

“She was loved and appreciated by everybody who knew her,” Gayleen said.

Gayleen said the facility where her sister worked has been cooperative and helpful since Gwen became ill.

“They’re taking responsibility for her infection,” she said.

A registered nurse who works at a Seattle hospital, Gayleen witnessed firsthand the wave of COVID-19 cases that slammed healthcare facilities last spring.

“Many people believe it’s a hyped-up government thing,” she said. “In my experience, it’s been awful.”

She said she’s watched the number of COVID-19 cases climb in North Idaho.

“Your area is being hit hard now,” she said.

Several of Gayleen’s coworkers have contracted COVID-19, as have other family members. They’ve since recovered — but Gayleen said she’s acutely aware that recovery is not guaranteed.

“People need to be careful and take care of themselves so they don’t find themselves in that situation,” Gayleen said. “It’s real, and frontline workers suffer from it.”

Perhaps the greatest heartbreak for Gayleen is knowing that her sister died just as she was about to enter a new stage of life.

“She was close to retirement,” Gayleen said. “She worked hard all these years. She didn’t get to do any of that.”

Gwen was a private person, Gayleen said. She didn’t usually like people to know what she did for them, whether it was donating school supplies or putting together potlucks for the less fortunate.

But Gayleen wanted others to know how her sister lived — and how she died.

“It’s a severe illness,” she said. “People need to know it’s real.”

A viewing will be held from 3 to 5 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 4 at Yates Funeral Home in Coeur d’Alene, with a celebration of life to follow in July.