Man shares wife’s heartbreaking final words after fatal sushi meal
By Ryan General
A Montana woman expressed suffering pain and uncertainty days before she died from eating uncooked mushrooms in a sushi roll.
Key points:
- Donna Ventura, died at age 64 on April 29, 2023, days after eating her lunch at Dave’s Sushi in Bozeman.
- Her husband, Jon Ventura, recently revealed that her final written messages to her family were filled with expressions of love and heartbreak.
- Jon is suing the restaurant and plans to create a scholarship in her name.
The details:
- A 2023 outbreak at Dave’s Sushi in Montana resulted in over 50 people getting sick and two people dying, including Donna. Health officials determined uncooked morel mushrooms imported from China were likely the cause of the outbreak.
- After being rushed to the hospital, Donna went into cardiac arrest. She spent 12 days in the intensive care unit before succumbing to liver and kidney failures. Doctors were unable to save her life despite administering an experimental drug to fight the mushroom’s toxicity.
- Donna’s esophagus and trachea were also damaged, and she could only communicate by writing notes to her loved ones. According to Jon, she wrote things like “I’m not sure I can go on much longer. How are we going to manage? I can’t stand the pain.” Her last written words to her family were “I love you.”
- Dave’s Sushi owner Aaron Parker acknowledged his restaurant was at fault but said there was no guidance about the dangers of uncooked morels at the time.
What’s next:
- Jon Ventura has launched a wrongful death lawsuit against Dave’s Sushi. If he receives damages, he hopes to open a scholarship in his wife’s name at Montana State University.
Tangent:
- Morel mushrooms are generally considered edible but must be fully cooked to avoid potential toxic effects.
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