Coronavirus in Pennsylvania
A year of COVID-19 in central Pa.: Where we started, where we are and how we got here
Updated on Mar 04, 2021;
Published on Mar 04, 2021
Nathaniel Williams II collects a swab sample from Casey Stouffer of Steelton at the COVID-19 mobile testing unit. Hamilton Health Center offers free COVID-19 testing at a mobile location set up in Steelton, November 13, 2020.
Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.com
The pandemic reached Pennsylvania on March 6, 2020.
That’s the day that the state announced that two people, one in Delaware County and one in Wayne County, had become the first in the Commonwealth to test positive for the novel coronavirus.
2020 in Pa.: The year in photos
Updated on Dec 28, 2020;
Published on Dec 28, 2020
Harrisburg Black Lives Matter Demonstration at the Capitol to protest the murder of George Floyd. A protestor is simultaneously sprayed with pepper spray and hit with a billy club as tensions ran high. May 30, 2020 Sean Simmers | ssimmers@pennlive.com
The past year has been both unfathomable and unforgettable.
In 2020, the coronavirus pandemic irrevocably altered life in Pennsylvania and around the globe. As the virus emerged in the spring, life changed in ways no one could have foreseen or even conceived a year ago.
Schools, businesses, sports and entertainment venues shut down. Doctors and nurses scrambled to treat patients suffering from an illness they were only beginning to understand. Shoppers endured shortages of staples such as disinfectants and toilet paper. Many had to work at home and simultaneously help their children navigate the concept of going to school virtually.
Donna Welch, 71, of Coolville, OH, passed away Friday, Dec. 25, 2020, at Marietta Memorial Hospital.
Graveside services will be held at 11 a.m., Tuesday, Dec. 29, 2020, at the Heiney Cemetery with Robert Franklin officiating.
Visitation will be held Monday, from 5-7 p.m. at White-Schwarzel Funeral Home in Coolville, OH.
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Harrisburg man who died of COVID-19 honored by national magazine
Updated Dec 19, 2020;
Posted Dec 19, 2020
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The magazine highlighted the fact that Welch, who had diabetes, continued giving clients rides to work and to the store even as infections rose in the community.
It also highlighted his recovery from addiction before earning a master’s degree in social work from Fordham University.
PEOPLE quoted a statement from Welch during his campaign for the Harrisburg school board: “I am running because I understand how education can completely change the trajectory of your life.”
His wife, Donna Welch, told the magazine, “One thing I admired about him he was brutally honest … He was straight up, wouldn’t sugar coat.”
Gerald Welch overcame tremendous obstacles in his life before losing it to COVID-19 complications.
“One thing I admired about him he was brutally honest,” wife Donna Welch tells PEOPLE. “He was straight up, wouldn’t sugar coat.” Get push notifications with news, features and more. + Follow
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The Pennsylvania social worker and education reformer began 2020 as the new Harrisburg School Board member and was determined to help the students get the education they deserved.
“Everyone in the community came around him, Donna, 60, says of his bold approach.
Gerald said during a campaign interview, I am running because I understand how education can completely change the trajectory of your life.