GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KCNC) – There has been one death in the serious outbreak of E. coli. coli at McDonald’s that affected more people in Colorado. than any other state. That victim – 88-year-old JC Smith – lived in Grand Junction, and his family says they are heartbroken.

“All he wanted to do was enjoy a hamburger with his wife. He trusted these restaurants and all we want is for our dad to come back,” said his daughter Debbie Bonnell.

The epidemic was related to onions used on McDonald’s Quarter Pounder sandwiches. Investigators believe these onions came from the Taylor Farms distribution center in Colorado Springs. These onions have been removed from affected McDonald’s locations and Taylor Farms has recalled yellow onions sent to other food service operators.

There have been 90 cases reported across 13 states, and Colorado had 26 people who reported the illness and could be attributed to this outbreak. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says most people recover of E. colibut some people saw serious complications. This was the case – at first – for Smith, whose full name was James Charles Smith.

Smith was a frequent McDonald’s customer

JC Smith and his wife Doris often went out to dinner in western Colorado and frequently visited the same McDonald’s not far from their home. They ordered the same meal every time: a quarter pounder.

After a visit in late September, he found himself very ill and in the hospital, according to Bonnell.

After four days he was released. Doctors said lab tests showed it was a case of E. coli. Her daughter spoke with the Mesa County Health Department before leaving.

“(The health officer) asked, ‘Where did my parents eat?’ because there’s been some sort of outbreak,” Bonnell said. “But they weren’t going to say where yet.”

Sometime after this hospitalization, Smith returned to McDonald’s and picked up another Quarter Pounder. This time, when he experienced symptoms again and went to the hospital, he ended up dying. His death occurred on October 20.

Smith was likely one of the first people to be identified as having a positive case of E. coli during the national outbreak.

A strong and loving man

Bonnell said his father was a Navy veteran and didn’t slow down in life.

She also said that before he got sick, he just wanted to go do things, even though he was told his feet couldn’t move either.

He grew up in Mississippi and worked as a firefighter and later as a postal service employee. The couple moved to Colorado in the 1980s. In Colorado, he was a small business owner and then maintenance manager at Vail Run Resort. He returned to the South for a stay, then returned to Mesa County.

This year marked JC and Doris’ 70th wedding anniversary. They always took trips together and loved playing with their great-grandchildren.

“Overall, my father was a loving person. He was compassionate. If he needed to be harsh, he shouldn’t be on that side,” said his son Jim Smith.

He had the onions, she didn’t

While Smith and his wife have always eaten Quarter Pounders at McDonald’s, Doris is not a fan of onions.

“I took mine off and gave it to him,” Doris said. “I feel guilty now because I gave him onions.”

Doris says that on October 3, she called her daughter to let her know that the normally strong JC had suddenly become weak.

“Your dad is very dizzy and doesn’t want to get out of bed. He’s afraid of falling,” she said, recalling the phone conversation.

Bonnell said she immediately went to her parents’ house.

“They were up all night. He had been on the toilet all night, every 10 minutes or so, and he had bloody diarrhea and he was so weak,” she said. “When I got here, he was so weak he couldn’t walk.”

After the four days in the hospital, the family didn’t know there was a specific restaurant to avoid.

Bonnell said, “She just asked me ‘where were some places my parents ate at’ because there was some sort of outbreak going on.

“She didn’t tell me (for us) not to go out to eat anymore,” Doris said, referring to health officials.

When JC got sick again after eating at McDonald’s, this time it was much worse.

“We saw my father in excruciating pain for several days – struggling with his arms and legs. It was very hard,” Bonnell said. “I was holding his hand and praying and telling him to try to rest, ‘We are here with you’ and ‘We are getting help for you.’”

Two days after JC’s death, health authorities reported the outbreak to the public.

Share their story out of concern

Jim Smith said: “I didn’t expect my father to go this fast.”

“We still had a lot of plans,” he said.

Smith’s grandson, Jim, says his family is angry and they wonder if more could have been done to save their beloved family member. But if they decided to speak publicly about what happened, it is because they are worried about the health of others.

“If you work in this field…and you lose a certain level of concern or become complacent, accidents happen. Then you will be held responsible. And when we talk about taking people’s loved ones and changing their lives permanently, other people need to know that,” he said.

At this point, the Smiths have not filed a lawsuit against McDonald’s or anyone involved. Right now, they say all they want is to get back to the man they loved.

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