Among Minnesotans battling the deadly virus is internationally renowned Cuban jazz pianist Ignacio “Nachito” Herrera.
The White Bear Lake resident and Dakota jazz club regular was rushed to the emergency room Saturday by family members after struggling with flu-like symptoms. He was diagnosed with the novel virus and remains in intensive care at a Twin Cities area hospital.
“We are hoping God helps him overcome this,” his wife, Aurora Herrera Gonzalez, said Sunday.
Herrera, who is in his 50s, performed Rachmaninoff’s Concerto No.2 with the Havana Symphony Orchestra at the age of 12 and went on to form ¡Cubanismo!, an Afro-Cuban/Latin jazz band which performed worldwide.
In 2012, he won the American Heritage Award from the American Immigration Council, the second Latin musician to do so since Carlos Santana. He has also performed with local Twin Cities symphonies and taught local youth orchestra and musical groups.
His daughter, Mirdalys Herrera Tweeton, a mother of three, Minnesota Army National Guard veteran and singer who has performed with her father, said she and her mother have not been able to see him since his hospitalization. They have communicated over speakerphone “but my father remains unconscious.”
“The medical staff caring for him has been incredible and he’s in good hands,” Mirdalys said, adding that prayer chains have been formed in Minnesota, across the country, overseas and in Cuba by fans and others who learned of the news.
“Miracles do exist, and many people are praying for him,” she added. “We don’t have words for the amount of support and warmth his fans and the public have shown us. I hope he gets well so we can show him all the well wishes.”
