Please learn from my son’s unnecessary death
Recently, I and several dozen others filled the Life Covenant Church in Helena for a service to honor the memory of a wonderful human being, loved by most all who knew him and unfortunately taken from this earth much too young by the Covid-19 virus. He was my youngest son, Larry Oren Metzger, who left behind not only his father but a loving wife, two children and three grandchildren all of whom are in shock at his sudden unexpected and totally unnecessary death.
Oren was an honest hardworking man who never met a stranger. He was a devout Christian with a great love for Jesus Christ, his family, his friends and his country. However, despite all of these admirable qualities he was human and no human is perfect, including my son, and I believe he made a terrible error of judgment when he chose not to be vaccinated against the Covid-19 virus.
Covid-19 vaccines are not 100% effective but statistics through Oct. 31 indicate they are proving to be well above 90% in preventing infection and those who have been vaccinated and become infected experience a far less serious illness except for extremely few “break-through” cases. I, Oren’s wife, a nephew’s wife, several grandchildren and numerous acquaintances are living proof of this as we all are vaccinated and experienced relatively mild cases of Covid-19.
Despite all of the positive results demonstrated by the vaccines, including no major side effects, over 40% of Montana citizens are still unvaccinated and many are dying in overcrowded, understaffed, hospitals around our state every day.
My purpose in writing this letter is in the hope and prayer that someone reading it might be persuaded to stop playing Russian roulette with their life and get vaccinated. The way our society/culture is treating Covid-19 and it’s mutations makes it highly probable that everyone will be exposed to it within the next couple of years and hundreds if not thousands more Montanans will die unnecessarily because for whatever reason they refuse to be vaccinated.
In summary; if the circumstances of my son’s death can persuade others to get vaccinated thereby saving lives then his death will not be totally in vain but could be considered serving God’s purposes.
Larry Metzger lives in Bigfork.