A Year Of The Pandemic In Westford: Share Your Story

WESTFORD, MA — In a year that's felt endless, consider this: The first anniversary of the proclamation of the coronavirus as a pandemic is only just arriving.

For the March 11 anniversary, Patch is collecting stories from local residents about the past year.

We want to hear about something that stood out to you, be it a memory about someone who died, a moment of hope you experienced or something you're looking forward to as vaccines bring the promise of a return to life before the virus.

The first case of COVID-19 came to the commonwealth in February 2020, when a UMass-Boston student returned from a visit to Wuhan, China. The second case didn't appear until March 2, but by that point the virus was likely widespread in the state. It would be about two weeks before Gov. Charlie Baker shut down nearly the entire state.

As of March 4, about 585,000 Massachusetts residents had tested positive for the virus and more than 16,250 residents had died — more than all the deaths of state residents in World War II, Korea and Vietnam combined.

Here's how to tell us your story:

• Email local editor Jenna Fisher at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com
• Publish your story using the Patch Neighbor Post feature
• Leave us a note in the comment section below