AFTON, Iowa — Joe and Judy Chastain had a simple Iowa love story.
They met in a Des Moines apartment complex after Judy locked herself out. Joe, a veteran and worker in a local factory, warmed to Judy, and the two married and began a life together.
The Chastains had three children: Jeff, Jim, and Jill.
The siblings shared their lives with their parents, calling them daily to share good news, bad news and gaining life advice.
Joe and Judy settled in Judy's hometown of Afton, population of around 800.
They attended their grandchildren's softball and baseball games, visited with neighbors in the local coffee shop.
But in the summer of 2020, their lives were turned upside down after both of them tested positive for COVID-19.
"Mom was the first one to come down with shortness of breath," said Jim Chastain.
"But I think it was Dad to get sick first, she said he's tired, he's sleeping a lot, and they had just recently moved to a new house, so everybody is tired and he kind of just attested it to that.
"But then they both started running fevers and that's when it was like ... OK."
Both Joe and Judy were admitted to the hospital and then sent back home after some treatment. But after trying to recover at home, the pair were back in the hospital, suffering from shortness of breath.
The time in the hospital battling coronavirus took a toll on the three children.
"You just felt helpless," Chastain said. "You're getting updates from the doctors over the phone, but you just have no idea what's really going on. And I wish that they could have had something like Zoom for us .. just so I could have a cup of coffee with Dad."
Joe and Judy Chastain remembered
The couple, who had spent decades of their life together were now separated by two rooms, and had just two visits before their final moments.
"The last time was when Mom decided she wanted the airflow removed, so they got to spend some time together that morning," said Jill McKnight, the youngest of the siblings.
One of Judy Chastain's last wishes was to have a big eagle statue made in her honor, sitting right outside the ball fields in Afton. The community came together, donating money in just a few weeks for the several-foot-tall statue.
"She would tell me, when we went to ball games, she said, 'You know, if something ever happens to me, make the biggest eagle memorial you can find," McKnight said. "Because they already had a little eagle statue, but of course she didn't think that was appropriate."
On the eagle statue, it reads:
"In Loving Memory of Joe and Judy Chastain, Forever Eagle Fans. Taken too soon by COVID-19."
The Chastain siblings are grateful for the physical tribute to their parents and for the generosity of so many who made it a reality. It's that statue and the memories of their parents that will live on.
Jill, saying she will miss her co-pilot to volleyball and softball games.
Jim, saying his mother "always had the answers."
And Jeff, saying he still finds himself picking up the phone to call his parents with good news.