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If someone close to you passed away in isolation in a facility, please share your brief story and photo to remember them.
The Boston Globe asked readers to remember. Read about a wide range of experiences and perspectives.. What do you remember most from COVID? Readers share their memories of isolation, camaraderie, loss, and hope. (subscription required)
[During the Covid pandemic] Massachusetts lost more than 22,000 lives; New England lost nearly 50,000; the United States lost more than 1.2 million, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Yet the nation has never really reckoned with its loss. We have no official day of remembrance or national memorial to COVID victims.
Then…
Boston Globe, February 1, 2020, Massachusetts Reports first confirmed case of coronavirus. “Massachusetts health officials Saturday announced the state’s first confirmed case of the new coronavirus, in a Boston resident who had recently returned from Wuhan City, the epicenter of the respiratory illness raging across China and spreading to other countries.”
And Now…
Boston Globe, April 10, 2025, Mass. reports 666 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 2 deaths in a week. See the latest data from Mass. “Massachusetts on Thursday reported 666 new confirmed coronavirus cases and 2 deaths in the week from March 30-April 5.
The state also reported that 0.8 percent of all total hospitalizations during that timeframe in Massachusetts were related to COVID-19, meaning 103 patients were hospitalized with COVID-19, and the seven-day percent positivity was 3.54 percent.”
Timeline
Lessons Learned
Dignity Alliance
Dignity Alliance MA began in 2020, in response to overwhelmingly high death rates in nursing homes in MA (and nation wide). People with disabilities and older adults were particularly vulnerable, but negligence in care in facilities exacerbated the infections.
Today, in 2025, COVID infections and deaths are more mainstream. Few are still wearing masks and vaccinations are down. However, it continues to be life threatening for some, and life-changing for others.
Today, Dignity Alliance has broadened our scope to improve life for all elder adults and/or those with disabilities, both in the community and in facilities.
Resources
Do It For Them | Covid-19 Impact
Nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic: a scoping review of challenges and responses – PMC
Friends and Family We Remember
(people without photos)
- Nancy Jones: Nancy Jones was a nursing home resident for 6 months, and was visited regularly by her husband and family until the COVID lockdowns in March 2020. She contracted COVID at the nursing home in June 2020 and passed away alone.
- David Smith: David Smith was in mid-stages of dementia and was living in an active memory care facility in March of 2020. He and his friends enjoyed regular visits. Reportedly, his dementia and mood declined dramatically after the COVID lockdown from the lack of activities and contact. He contracted COVID in the facility in July 2020 and died alone.
TESTing Individual Remembrances
A retired partner of a large Boston law firm, Peter went to a nursing home for recuperation when he was 75 but as his health deteriorated, he remained there for 14 months. Peter’s wife, Debbie, was with him every day, helping with his care and keeping him company. When nursing homes were closed in March, 2020, Debbie was beside herself with worry because Peter was blind, could not hear well and was unable to walk, and the limited nursing home staff had to leave Peter alone for long periods. After 3 weeks, Peter contracted COVID. Family was discouraged from visiting but there were a few FaceTime sessions with family on the day of his death.
Debilitated with various physical conditions, Peter was in a nursing home for 14 months before his death at the beginning of the pandemic. His wife spent every day with him at the nursing home, helping with his care and keeping him company, and so it was devastating when the state closed nursing homes to all visitors in March, 2020. The facility was not staffed adequately to compensate for the loss of family assistance, and many staff had to work multiple jobs because facilities would not permit workers full-time status, thus making the spread of COVID among nursing homes inevitable. Peter died alone and without family present.
Peter was in a nursing home when the state closed facilities to all visitors, including his wife and children. The nursing home was not staffed adequately to compensate for the loss of family assistance, and many staff had to work in multiple nursing homes because facilities kept most workers to part-time status, thus making the spread of COVID among nursing homes inevitable. Peter died alone and without family present.
Prior to entering into late stage Alzheimer’s disease, Ron Von Ronne lived a life of service whether it was coaching Little League, as a ski instructor for the Adaptive Ski Program or a guide for the disabled at the Double H Ranch. In 2019, Ron was sent to the Hudson Park Rehabilitation and Nursing center by a hospital. At Hudson Park, prior to COVID, his connection to his life was maintained through frequent family visits and outings to his former home to enjoy his favorite Italian foods. During the COVID lockdown, Ron lost not only all connection to his family, but his safety. All of his belongings were stolen, he was assaulted multiple times and his antipsychotic medication dosage increased six times his normal amount. Ron lived without connection to his family for 287 days. Today, Ron continues to live at Hudson Park but is once again able to visit frequently with family.
A lover of opera and classical music, he played the piano, violin, viola, and cello. This includes the piano playing he did as a resident in facilities at the end of his life. He didn’t die of covid, but declined with his own health conditions when his essential caregivers were denied access to help him manage during the early days of the pandemic.
3 across
A retired partner of a large Boston law firm, Peter went to a nursing home for recuperation when he was 75 but as his health deteriorated, he remained there for 14 months. Peter’s wife, Debbie, was with him every day, helping with his care and keeping him company. When nursing homes were closed in March, 2020, Debbie was beside herself with worry because Peter was blind, could not hear well and was unable to walk, and the limited nursing home staff had to leave Peter alone for long periods. After 3 weeks, Peter contracted COVID. Family was discouraged from visiting but there were a few FaceTime sessions with family on the day of his death.
Debilitated with various physical conditions, Peter was in a nursing home for 14 months before his death at the beginning of the pandemic. His wife spent every day with him at the nursing home, helping with his care and keeping him company, and so it was devastating when the state closed nursing homes to all visitors in March, 2020. The facility was not staffed adequately to compensate for the loss of family assistance, and many staff had to work multiple jobs because facilities would not permit workers full-time status, thus making the spread of COVID among nursing homes inevitable. Peter died alone and without family present.
Peter was in a nursing home when the state closed facilities to all visitors, including his wife and children. The nursing home was not staffed adequately to compensate for the loss of family assistance, and many staff had to work in multiple nursing homes because facilities kept most workers to part-time status, thus making the spread of COVID among nursing homes inevitable. Peter died alone and without family present.
Prior to entering into late stage Alzheimer’s disease, Ron Von Ronne lived a life of service whether it was coaching Little League, as a ski instructor for the Adaptive Ski Program or a guide for the disabled at the Double H Ranch. In 2019, Ron was sent to the Hudson Park Rehabilitation and Nursing center by a hospital. At Hudson Park, prior to COVID, his connection to his life was maintained through frequent family visits and outings to his former home to enjoy his favorite Italian foods. During the COVID lockdown, Ron lost not only all connection to his family, but his safety. All of his belongings were stolen, he was assaulted multiple times and his antipsychotic medication dosage increased six times his normal amount. Ron lived without connection to his family for 287 days. Today, Ron continues to live at Hudson Park but is once again able to visit frequently with family.
A lover of opera and classical music, he played the piano, violin, viola, and cello. This includes the piano playing he did as a resident in facilities at the end of his life. He didn’t die of covid, but declined with his own health conditions when his essential caregivers were denied access to help him manage during the early days of the pandemic.
