We asked readers: What was the moment in the Year of COVID when you knew your life had changed? Below are the responses we received. Touching. Telling. Inspiring. Heartwarming. Heartbreaking. Thank you, readers, for returning to the Year of COVID and sharing these moments with us. Someday we will look back and wonder how we got through it. And we will know that we got through it because of one another. — Margaret McKenzie
I was primed, fit and ready to rock and roll in Ukraine in a powerlifting contest as part of a team from the American Powerlifting Association. Because of my age, I had a decent shot at winning a medal. Canada was a fallback if Ukraine fell through. I was super excited, but once COVID hit and the borders were closed, that was it for me. Right there and then, I knew this thing was real and my days of lifting competitively were over. I was gutted and still am. Ted Sares, North Conway
When my brother-in-law was sickened by COVID-19 and transported to the hospital by ambulance on March 23, 2020, whereupon he was admitted to the ICU and put on a ventilator. Three weeks later, he suffered a series of strokes which left him in a vegetative state. On April 24, 2020, he was taken off the ventilator and died shortly thereafter. On that same day, the U.S. COVID-19 death toll passed 50,000. Mike Rice
Driving through downtown…
