NEDERLAND, Texas — Tears were shed and cheers were heard as members of the Mid-County community welcomed a beloved food truck owner home after his battle with COVID-19.
Joe Oates, Boss Burger owner, returned home Wednesday afternoon after spending three months in a Houston hospital battling COVID-19. His wife, Mary Oates, kept the community updated on her husband’s condition through a series of Facebook posts.
Members of the Mid-County community lined along Boston Avenue in Nederland as they waited to welcome the food truck owner home. Friends of Oates said it was hard not to get emotional knowing at one point, there was a chance they would have never seen him again.
“We want to see Joe's face, right. We want to see him, you know, that's what we're missing in our community. We're missing the Joe. We all know,” Deana Mings, Touch of Cajun Café owner, said.
Mings said Joe Oates has been like family to her and her husband and has supported their restaurant throughout the years. Friends and family of Oates said he is a giving and good-hearted person, who has had a big impact on the community.
“Joe is one of those people that, he never met a stranger, and every time you'd see Joe, he'd always had his arms open for hugs. That's just Joe,” Mings said.
Friends of Oates said he is a fighter and an inspiration after winning his battle with COVID-19. For much of Oates' time in the hospital, he had to be hooked up to a ventilator.
“Three months of being on a ventilator. Having all the health problems from COVID that he had, so we're very blessed to have him back and we're excited to have him back,” James Vandevender, a friend of Joe Oates said.
Friends of Oates said it's inspiring to know that through the support and prayers of friends, family, and the community, Oates made it home. It gives them hope that they too can overcome obstacles such as these.
“It just gives people in our community hope that, you know, just because you have COVID, it doesn't mean that you're going to pass away,” Deanna Mings, said. “It gives you hope to survive. It gives a person, you know, that person they made it.”