WHITFIELD COUNTY, Ga. — A 5-year-old boy who died of COVID-19 is being remembered by his family and friends Wednesday as a kid who was always smiling.
A kid who loved rainbows and his miniature horse named Cupid.
Wyatt wanted to see everyone smile.
He loved his mom. He loved the animals on their farm. He really loved being a big brother.
His dad is a lieutenant with the Whitfield County Sheriff's Office and they would send videos to each other when he was on duty.
"Hey little buddy. It's about your bedtime. I love you so much man," Lt. Wes Gibson said in a video to his son.
Wyatt wore a superhero cape when he held hands with his dad in uniform.
His dad was his superhero.
"Daddy. I love you. It's way way past my bedtime," Wyatt said in a video to his Dad.
His dad was his superhero but Wyatt, he was his family’s sunshine.
He was their big helper who waved at strangers in the grocery store.
"My buddy, my best friend," Lt. Gibson wrote in the hours after he lost his son.
"Wyatt was the most happy, joyful. He loved everything and everybody. He was my little boy's best friend," Wyatt's Godmother Amanda Summey said.
She always saw him smiling.
She shared this picture after a long day on the lake, where she said it's clear her son is ready to go to sleep, but Wyatt's smile is still shining.
"He loved everything outside. Horses, dogs, trees, flowers. That kid, he just loved everything outside. He was such a helper," she said.
She shared a video of Wyatt strumming a guitar in his cowboy boots in their front yard.
"It's unbelievable. I feel like I am going to wake up and this has all been a nightmare. It does not feel real. It can't be real," she said.
Earlier this month, Wyatt's family thought he had food poisoning.
He was sleepy and threw up some... but then his family said his tongue turned white and they brought him to the Children’s Hospital in Chattanooga where he was diagnosed with strep throat, a staph infection and COVID-19.
"She said it was just a regular COVID test. We don't even know if it was the new strain or not," she said.
According to the Georgia Department of Pubic Health, only three other children in Georgia have died from COVID-19.
Wyatt's family said they know his case is rare, it's far outside the norm but that does nothing to take away their pain.
"I love you. I wish I was there, buddy. Get some good rest,' Lt. Gibson said.
Summey said Wyatt's family hasn't started planning his memorial yet because it's just too overwhelming right now.
Wyatt's family is in quarantine for COVID-19 for the next week and a half.
A GoFundMe to raise money for the Gibson family has raised more than $31,000 so far. There is also a meal train set up online to help the family.
