300,000 Dead: The Stories Of Those We Lost To Coronavirus

NEW JERSEY — Morganville resident Gloria Scarpati remembers her mother, Margaret M. Stella, one of more than 16,000 individuals in New Jersey lost this year to the virus.

Margaret had multiple sclerosis and was wheelchair-bound living in an assisted living facility, Scarpati recalled to Patch. Life had not always been kind to the New Jersey woman: Stella was badly injured in a fire several years ago and suffered life-threatening burns as a result.

"Despite all her hardships, at the age of 65, she finally started to enjoy life," Scarpati said. "She participated in every activity offered in her facility, made a lot of friends and was thrilled that she could see her grandkids so often."

Unfortunately, upon moving into the Morganville facility, Stella fell ill with COVID-19 shortly after the lockdown began.

Stella was just one of the more than 300,000 Americans who have lost their lives to the coronavirus. It's an impossible number, but those who died were more than a statistic. We lost mothers, brothers, children and friends.

We all lost some of our heroes.

In light of the devastating milestone, Patch is working to help you share the triumphs, trials, and accomplishments of those you lost. We want to help you share their stories.

Do you want to pay tribute to a friend or loved one lost to the coronavirus? Share their story here.

We also hope this allows their neighbors to know them better. Below is a virtual memorial created by Patch and compiled through tributes submitted directly from loved ones. You can read them all, or search by town and state.