A solemn wreath-laying ceremony took place in the Capitol Rotunda on Thursday morning to mark the death of more than 1,000 Kentuckians due to the coronavirus. Watching in respectful silence were Governor Andy Beshear, Lieutenant Governor Jacqueline Coleman, and others.
The ceremony began with the handbell ensemble from First United Methodist Church in Frankfort, who played the chorus of “My Old Kentucky Home.”
A member of the Kentucky State Police Honor Guard then performed the formal wreath-laying, which took place at the foot of the Abraham Lincoln statue in the center of the Rotunda.
Although computer models from earlier in the year had indicated many more Kentucky deaths from the coronavirus, Beshear said reaching the level of 1,000 deaths is still a huge tragedy. “Much more than we lost in either Vietnam or the Korean War. This is devastating. It doesn’t mean, given the opponent we are facing, that we are not doing a good job. It just means that we have to recognize how much this hurts those around us.”
Beshear said each one of the coronavirus victims is more than just a number. “They are one of us, and no matter how old they were, they deserve time. No matter what other complicating health factors that they had, this played a part in it, and we owe it to them to work hard and make sure that we limit the future casualties that we have.”
To honor the more than 1,000 Kentucky victims of COVID-19, the governor has also ordered the flags at all state office buildings to be lowered to half-staff for one week starting Thursday and is urging Kentuckians to do the same at their homes and businesses.