Davis Cemetery unveils new COVID-19 memorial

PHOTO: This year, the Davis Cemetery unveils the new COVID-19 memorial, commemorating those lost during the pandemic.

By Noah Meyer

BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–

On the north side of the Davis Cemetery, four gleaming arches stand tall to remember the people lost during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The COVID-19 Memorial took over 3 years to fully develop, with contributions from over 300 artists and the entire Davis community. 

On Sunday, Sept. 22, dozens of volunteers and onlookers gathered to celebrate the commemoration of the memorial.

 Flanked by city council members and artists, Stephen Souza, the Vice Chair of the Davis Cemetery District and the leader of the construction of the memorial, stood and gave prepared remarks about what the memorial meant to him. 

“[This is] a step towards restoring balancing in our community, honoring the memory of those we lost, acknowledging the many ways we were impacted and fostering hope for renewal [and healing],” Souza said.

The project’s four arches each have their own meanings. They represent Home, Community, Loss, and Hope. The arches are arranged with a walkway underneath, as the local choir, the Davis Threshold Singers, gathered on both sides of the walkway and sang as participants walked past. 

Lead artist Wesley Horn was especially impacted by the moment, seeing his hard work come to fruition.

“I was thrilled [to see] the number of people in town who showed up, it was wonderful to have been working on it [for] so long and to see that stream of people actually passing through,” Horn said.

Ultimately, the memorial stands as a reminder to the entire Davis community of how it reacted to COVID-19. 

“We were a resilient community, who came together and supported each other, took care of those we lost, and as a community, we decided to build something to remember that isolation [that] we all have retained afterward and went through during,” Souza said.