Nearly 600 chairs set up in Milwaukee to remember lives lost due to COVID-19

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- Close to 600 empty chairs were set up in Milwaukee's McArthur Square on Tuesday, Oct. 27. The memorial was put up to remember the Milwaukee residents who have died from COVID-19. 

"This virus is serious. Look at those chairs," said Rev. Greg Lewis, Souls to the Polls. 

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett shared a personal story of loss. He talked about a lifelong friend, a woman with Down syndrome. 

"I got a got a letter from her earlier this year, in May, it's sitting in my office right behind my desk," Barrett said. "And it's a very simple letter, again because she had Down syndrome, and she just wanted to know how I was doing." 

Less than two months later, that friend died after contracting coronavirus and pneumonia. Mayor Barrett said the pandemic should not be a politics issue.