DETROIT LAKES, Minn. - Four years ago, 4-year-old Sophia Odens from Pelican Rapids, Minnesota, got very sick with a strain of E. coli called O157, which is very hard on the kidneys.
Sophia's mom, Karen, caught it too, while caring for her. Both of them were hospitalized. Doctors couldn't save Sophia.
"She was so small that she couldn't fight off this bacteria. And she died," said Karen's father, Ed Welke.
Welke said prior to Sophia's death, the daughter and mother were inseparable -- dressing up in costumes and playing with Sophia's favorite toys, My Little Pony.
"Everything was wonderful until that E. coli hit," Welke said.
Besides her grief, and post-traumatic stress disorder that followed, Karen's kidneys were damaged from the E. coli. Her body had already been through a lot.
"She was born with congenital defects. She was a little person. So she was quite small herself, so she had trouble herself fighting off this E. coli 157," Welke said.
For the last eight months, Karen was getting kidney dialysis in Detroit Lakes three days a week. Finally, her body could take no more, and the deadly bacteria claimed her life as well, leaving a family grieving another tragic death, and urging others to guard themselves from E. coli O157.
"I urge everybody to wash your fruits and vegetables. Don't trust anything. Because when you buy that from the grocery store, you have to protect yourself," Welke said.