BLAINE, Minn. — There were bubbles, signs and cheers welcoming Dave Dentz back home on in Blaine on Friday.
Family, friends and coworkers came together for a celebration, that seven months ago, seemed unlikely.
"Dave is family. All of the coworkers have been waiting for this day while he's been in the hospital. It's been quite the journey," said Jeff Johnson, Dave's co-worker at Pro-Tec Design in Minnetonka.
Dianne Aamoth works with Dave's wife, Angie, at Head Start in Coon Rapids, "It's been a long road here and now we're good to go," she said.
Dave didn't know if he'd ever be able to come home after being hospitalized with COVID-19 for 208 days.
"I'll be the first one to tell you that I never thought that I was going to be here and I don't say that lightly. When I went in the hospital, I couldn't breathe and my first memory waking up was getting dialysis," said Dentz.
Angie, Dave's wife of three-and-a-half years was by his side during the COVID battle and never gave up — even during the difficult days.
"I knew he was a fighter and I was not going to give up on him — and now look where he is," she said.
"Doctors were pressuring my wife to pull the plug three times; they called her in on meetings. They said, 'His quality of life is never going to be good, he's never going to be breathing on his own and he's never going to walk.' These are things that they told her and thank God she stuck by her beliefs because I'm here to talk about it today," Dentz said.
Dave is really looking forward to spending Father's Day with his kids and grandkids.
"I'm so thankful that I've got a second chance at life — a lot of people didn't get that," he said.
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