Ayla Garcia, a U.S. mother of four from Richmond, Virginia, has died after contracting a salmonella infection during a church mission trip to Kenya. Her family is now raising funds to clear hospital bills and repatriate her body.
Ayla Garcia travelled to Kenya on June 30 with her church and family to support an orphanage. While in the country she contracted a salmonella infection and was admitted to a hospital in Nairobi.
Garcia, who had sickle cell disease, developed severe complications when the infection spread to her kidneys, liver and bloodstream. She received at least four blood transfusions, was placed on dialysis and developed jaundice during nearly two weeks of hospital treatment.
Her family launched a GoFundMe appeal targeting $28,000, or about Ksh3.6 million, to pay outstanding medical bills and return her body to the United States. "It is with a heavy heart that we share our beloved daughter, sister, mother, aunt, cousin, niece and friend, Ayla, has passed," the family said in a statement.