AUGUSTA, Maine — A memorial to honor the Mainers who have died with COVID-19 is set to be built at the statehouse.
State Senator Ben Chipman introduced a bill in December. It became law last week and will take effect in October. He said he wanted to honor the nearly 900 victims who have died with the virus in Maine and the first responders on the front lines.
Chipman said he is figuring out how it will be paid for saying he may do some fundraising.
He said he will be working with the Capitol Park Commission and an artist to design the memorial which will be outside on the lawn of the statehouse.
"The important thing is we recognize the lives lost. That we have some really creative artistic expression involved in the memorial and that we recognize all the lives lost from the pandemic and we do so in an official way as state government," Chipman said.
Chipman hopes construction on the memorial will start next spring.