Nearly 30,000 Hoosiers are estimated to have died from COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. To honor these victims and their families, Faith Presbyterian Church is creating a memorial to be unveiled in 2025.

Pastor Charlotte Lohrenz and outreach team member Kristie Nave are in the process of gathering names for the memorial. The nine-foot structure will be a mosaic of tiles inscribed with personal memorials of the victims. While the memorial will be featured on church grounds, Lohrenz maintains that anyone, regardless of church affiliation, is welcome to submit names or come view the memorial. It is free to participate.
The inspiration for the memorial is drawn from the assessment Faith made from their congregation and community about the effect of the pandemic.
āIt was a global event and we thought about what would be helpful, and we thought it would be worthwhile to help collect the names of those who have died to recognize the loss that people had. This is a collective trauma we had all been in together,ā Lohrenz said.
The foundation for the memorial was built upon permanence, Lohrenz said. The church wanted a place for the public to come anytime and view the memorial.
The mosaic tiles represent the different lives and tragedy all woven and connected by COVID-19, the broken pieces of life coming together, Lohrenz said. The mosaic will picture flowers, shrubbery and seedlings emerging from the ground. Butterflies and birds will be shown in the open sky. The names will be featured in the lower half of the mosaic, through the roots underground.
While the initial stage of the project has taken off, Lohrenz maintains that there were challenges along the way.
āI think like a lot of organizations, we had so many things right out of COVID-19 that we needed to take care of immediately,ā Lohrenz said. āWe had trouble finding contractors to prepare the grounds for the memorial. We finally found a way to move forward with it by doing a lot of work ourselves and people in the congregation.ā
Despite the challenges, Nave wants the community to know that the overall goal is to honor those lost.
āI hope people come and feel peace by seeing their loved oneās name on the memorial,ā Nave said. āI hope that they can come and hope to let go of their grief. There was so much pain and grief during this time and people are still reeling from it.ā
Names must be submitted by Sept. 1, 2024. To submit a name, visit indianapolisfaith.org and click on the COVID-19 memorial link. Each submission will require the submitterās name, email, phone number, as well as the name, date of birth, date of death and three to five words to describe those wished to be memorialized. There is also an option to add a photo.
Contact Staff Writer Hanna Rauworth at 317-762-7854 or follow her on Instagram at @hanna.rauworth.