The Region - News from Sept. 27, 1985

Michael, a 3-year-old boy born with AIDS whose selfless concern for the starving children of Africa inspired President Reagan to write him a letter of praise and encouragement, died in San Bernardino County. The boy and his aunt tried to call the President earlier this month to ask about the plight of starving children in Africa and inquire about Reagan’s health. Michael, who was infected with acquired immune deficiency syndrome in his mother’s womb, received a letter from Reagan on Sept. 12, and nurses at Loma Linda University Medical Center hospital read it to him “over and over again,” his aunt, Carmen Gallegos, said. He died in Gallegos’ arms, less than a month before his fourth birthday. “She was sitting with him, then his (blood) pressure began dropping,” said Carla Lidner, the child’s respiratory therapist. “He just slipped away peacefully.”