Lina Calvache’s husband, 76-year-old Edgar Calvache Sr., died of COVID-19 on Oct. 1, 2020. They were married for 47 years. She and her son joined in a march Saturday to honor those who died of COVID-19 and those who survived. 

“He was a hard worker," said Calvache. "He was a very good husband and a very good father and that’s why I’m here. I'm here to honor him and push the people to take the vaccine because we suffer a lot with my husband."

“We’re here because we want to honor him and we wanna make sure that everyone out there gets vaccinated. Don’t wait to go through what we went through first hand” said her son, Richard Calvache. 

Dozens of marchers with photos and signs of loved ones lost crossed the Brooklyn Bridge hoping to take just as many steps as there are lives lost to the virus in the United States. 

Rosie Davis founded Yellow Heart Memorial after her mother died of COVID-19 at a nursing home in Dallas in May of 2020. 

“My whole world was torn apart," said Davis. "My mom was my mom and my dad. I didn’t get to have a funeral for her. They made us cremate my mom against our own will because they didn’t know if my mom was still carrying the virus. There were a lot of things that didn’t give me a lot of closure.” 

The memorial has grown to eight chapters across the country. She says the goal is to humanize the numbers we hear in the media and to give those dealing with the same grief somewhere to turn. Her group helped co-sponsor the event. 

Those at the event said they found comfort among those who are coping with the same reality.

“As sad as it is that everyone here is representing someone that they lost, it feels like it’s another community because we all have something in common," said Richard Calvache. "We all have a common ground. Take care of yourself, take care of your family, take care of your neighbor by simply just wearing your mask and getting vaccinated”