Massachusetts COVID Memorial: Event looks to honor those who died and ‘grieve our collective losses’

After Earla Dawn Dimitriadis died from COVID-19 in December 2020, her daughter, Jennifer Ritz Sullivan, wasn’t able to have a funeral.

“As somebody who had just gone through having my mother slowly suffocate to death for two and a half weeks in ICU alone, it was not something that any of us were willing to risk to hold a memorial of any kind,” Ritz Sullivan said.

Now, nearly two years later, Ritz Sullivan is planning to grieve and remember her mother among friends and strangers at a public Massachusetts COVID Memorial.

“I’ve learned more and more that many people don’t have a space to grieve their loved ones and many people did not get to have a ceremony,” she said. “I started to wrack my brain and think about, what if I could create an event?”

The two-hour event is on Sept. 10 at Three Sisters Sanctuary in Goshen. It begins at 1:30 p.m. and is free but “donations to Three Sisters Sanctuary are welcome,” the event states. Monte from 93.9 The River will be hosting the event.

The event was originally planned for 2021 but had to be postponed due to rising COVID-19 cases.

Loved ones are also encouraged to submit the name of the person who died from COVID-19, so their name and story can be read during the ceremony. Small items that remind attendees of those who died, such as a prayer card or piece from their favorite board game, can also be brought and left.

“These items will stay at the sanctuary and be forever displayed,” the Facebook invite states.

Jennifer Ritz Sullivan looks through old photos of her mom, Earla Dawn Dimitriadis.

While any loss of a loved one is difficult, Ritz Sullivan points out the pandemic made it much harder.

“This trauma is still very real. I have experienced a lot of loss in my life and a lot of complicated losses. And this is different,” she said. “I am still inundated daily with people’s opinions on the vaccine, on people’s disinformation. I still have to have my COVID boundaries in place and many people now refer to the pandemic in past tense or as a time they look back on fondly because they were able to stay home and try out a bread recipe or learn a new language. And I am constantly feeling engulfed by my grief.”

Plus, she said, “every day people are still dying from the horrific disease that took my mother.”

On average seven people die every day in Massachusetts from COVID-19, according to data from The New York Times. There have been 21,176 deaths in the commonwealth and nearly 2 million cases.

“Knowing that families are still dealing with this preventable tragedy is gut wrenching,” she said. “And it doesn’t allow me to feel any sense of ease or relief or healing around my mother’s death.”

The event is taking precautions this year. It is being held outdoors and everyone is being asked to be masked.

As the COVID Justice leader for the state of Massachusetts with the nonprofit Marked By COVID, she’s help hold virtual memorials. They’re also working to create physical memorials in every state, created by communities who were impacted, having a Remembrance Day dedicated in Massachusetts and a federal COVID Memorial Day.

“We have to hold space for this. Our loved ones are not just numbers,” Ritz Sullivan said. “The more we acknowledge this loss, I truly believe we have a better handle on the future pandemic prevention.”

Click here for more about the event.

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