‘He was perfectly healthy’: Coastal Carolina University alum dies from coronavirus
A Coastal Carolina University alum died last Saturday of coronavirus complications, following a near one-month battle with the respiratory disease.
Dan Spano, a Norwalk, Connecticut resident, was a Coastal Carolina University alum who went on to become a personal trainer and gym owner. He was 30 years old and didn’t have any underlying health conditions.
“He was a wonderful and sweet guy,” Spano’s cousin Nicolette Castiglia Sigismondi told The Sun News. “He had so much life in him and was genuine. He will be missed by all of us.”
Spano’s sister, Melissa Castiglia, said her brother fell ill on March 18, first with a fever and later developing a cough. After a testing site in Norwalk confirmed his COVID-19 diagnosis days later, Spano quarantined himself in his apartment for two weeks, taking Tylenol to reduce his fever as his condition changed each day.
Spano’s fever worsened, leading to headaches, nausea and shortness of breath, Castiglia said.
“He was really weak (and) he couldn’t get out of bed,” Castiglia said. “His doctor told him to continue doing what he was doing and to stay hydrated and continue Tylenol. That night he called my parents that he couldn’t breath.”
Despite the doctor’s advice, Spano was taken to Norwalk Hospital, where he was admitted to the intensive care unit and placed on a ventilator. He was in the hospital for 11 days before he died, Castiglia said.
With the virus attacking his organs, doctors put Spano on dialysis, as friends and family took to social media asking for plasma donations to help him fight the virus. While a donor was scheduled to help Spano on Apr. 13, according to Castiglia, tests taken just days before found a blood clot that later spread to a ventricle in his heart.
On April 11, Castiglia said doctor’s notified her family that Spano’s body was shutting down. His family said their goodbyes through Zoom, a video communications application, because they were restricted from the hospital.
“He was perfectly healthy. The virus attacked him hard because his immune system was good. At one point they put him on medicine to suppress his immune system,” Castiglia said. “This virus doesn’t discriminate. Stay home, and if you need to be out, wear a mask and take precautions. If you’ve had the virus, get tested for antibodies and donate plasma. It could save a life.”
Spano graduated from Coastal Carolina University in 2012 when he earned his degree in sports management. He moved back to Connecticut where he officiated youth sports and opened his first GYMGUYZ franchise in Farfield County with best friends Jimmy Bonavita and Sam Langer.
Bonavita said the trio were inseparable as they enjoyed their lives as best friends and business partners.
“Our every day lives were so intertwined between our friendship and work,” Bonavita said. “We traveled all over the country together creating memories that I will never forget and accomplished so many great milestones as young entrepreneurs.”
According to his GYMGUYZ biography, Spano felt his purpose was to help change peoples’ lives through health and fitness, noting his enthusiasm for success stories. He thrived inspiring his clients and team through his compassion, dedication and love for health and fitness, his bio read, encouraging clients to work and think like a champion in every aspect of life.
.jpg "Dan Spano3 (2).jpg")
Since his death, family and friends have taken to social media, sharing heartwarming stories and anecdotes about Spano. Many describe him as a hard worker with an infectious smile who was healthy and physically fit.
David Koerner said he met Spano at CCU while studying sports management. The pair became close and soon wound up living together in a duplex with six other guys. As best friends through college, Koerner said Spano always had a smile on his face and loved going to school, adding that he spent much of his time at the recreation department working as a referee.
“Dan was a great hard-working kid,” Koerner said.
Chelsea East knew Spano from CCU and recalled he had a contagious smile that brightened the day of people who knew him. She said other members of the CCU community have rallied around Spano’s family.
“I would just like to say he was a wonderful person with an awesome personality and infectious smile,” she said. “I am blessed that our paths crossed at Coastal Carolina.”
The Sun News reporter Tyler Fleming contributed to this report.
