Shortly before 1 a.m. on Friday, October 2, President Donald J. Trump confirmed through social media that both he and First Lady Melania Trump had tested positive for COVID-19.
By late Friday morning, the President and Mrs. Trump had begun experiencing mild symptoms of the virus, including mild-fever and fatigue. And by 6 p.m., the President was taken by helicopter from the White House in Washington, D.C., to the Walter Reed Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, where he was given supplemental oxygen.
While there were certainly those who took the opportunity to politicize the President’s diagnosis, the announcement was met with generally bipartisan support, including from West Virginia’s state and local leadership.
“I really feel that we as a nation, and especially West Virginians, need to offer up a prayer for our President and First Lady. I am close with the President, and I know our President as Donald. But Donald J. Trump, our President, and his beautiful wife, our First Lady Melania, have now been tested positive for this dreaded disease and this dreaded killer,” Justice said. “I know as our leaders, and especially our President moves forward, I’m with him and I feel his pain. And I also know the arris that he takes with him as he charges up the mountains. I oftentimes think about Ronald Reagan. When he was our President and he was dreadfully shot, and as he entered the hospital, they quickly got him to the operating room and he looked up at his surgeon and said ‘I hope all of you are Republicans.’ And the surgeon replied back ‘Mr. President, today, you can be assured that we are all Republicans.’ Well I would ask all of us just this, that today in this country, whether you’re an Independent, a Democrat or a Republican, as this country is divided in a lot of ways that we shouldn’t be, that especially today we all come together as not Independents or Democrats or Republicans, but as Americans.”
While speaking with the WV Daily News, West Virginia Senator Stephen Baldwin said, “We prayed for the health of the President and First Lady in church on Sunday. We want them to be well.”
Senator Baldwin went on to stress the severity of the situation, then reiterated the need to take the necessary precautions and follow all safety guidelines.
“Millions of people across the world are infected right now,” Baldwin said. “They all have families and responsibilities and futures. They all deserve access to health care because our world needs them to be well. So we pray for them while wearing our masks. ‘Thoughts and prayers’ isn’t just a saying; it’s an action. We want people to be well so we wear our masks. We socially distance. We sanitize. We refrain from crowds. The more precautions we take, the less likely we are to contract the virus. COVID-fatigue seems to be setting in. When we see leaders contract the virus, it reminds us that we must stay vigilant. Precautions are acts of prayer, because we are caring for others by being safe. The good book teaches us ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’ That’s why we take precautions … as an act of love for our neighbors near and far.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), COVID-19 has increased the risk of death for the average American by approximately 10%. As of the time of writing, the CDC reports that 7,436,278 confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been identified within the United States. Of those cases, 209,560 Americans have lost their lives to the disease. 209,560 mothers and fathers, daughters and sons, brothers and sisters. 209,560 grandmothers and grandfathers, aunts and uncles, cousins and friends. COVID-19 has now killed more than twice as many Americans as the wars in Korea and Vietnam, Operation Desert Storm, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the ongoing war on terror combined. 209,560 people who mattered, and 364 of them were West Virginians.
Friday, October 2, 2020 will be a day long-remembered by American history. It will forever be the day that the President of the United States, the most powerful and well-protected person in the world, tested positive for the disease which has taken the lives of so many. If the President of the United States can be infected, then anyone can.
Although several vaccines are in development, there are currently none available to defend against COVID-19. The best way to protect yourself from becoming infected is to avoid contact with the virus. COVID-19 is known to spread between people who are in close proximity to each other. And research conducted by the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Research Center indicates that it is highly possible for people showing no symptoms to be both carriers and spreaders of the disease.
The CDC recommends that hands be washed frequently for a minimum of 20-seconds each time. If soap and water are not readily available, a hand-sanitizer consisting of at least 60% alcohol should be used. If possible, avoid contact with anyone who is currently sick. Keep six-feet of distance between yourself and anyone who does not live in your household. And most importantly of all, wear a mask when in public, or around others outside of your household.
On Monday, July 6, Gov. Jim Justice issued an executive order establishing a statewide indoor face-covering requirement. This is an order which the overwhelming majority of West Virginians have complied with.
“Everyone has been very cooperative. People are really good, and they want to take care of each other,” according to Clay Elkins, owner of The Local in White Sulphur Springs. “We haven’t had any problems at all.”
This is a sentiment shared by David Braddock, owner of A New Chapter Bookstore in Lewisburg.
“In the last 30 days, we’ve had maybe three or four people who were upset about wearing masks,” Braddock said. He also said that A New Chapter does not refuse service to those unwilling to wear a mask. “We offer curbside pick-up. So if a customer really doesn’t want to wear a mask, we’re happy to bring their books out to them.”
Erin Hurst, Director of Community Relations at the Greenbrier Valley Medical Center, confirms what Elkins and Braddock had to say.
“We’re pretty buttoned up here,” Hurst said. “So far so good. Everyone has been very cooperative. At the Medical Center, we follow all of the CDC, state and local guidelines.”
The cooperation shown by state-residents is undoubtedly the driving force behind West Virginia’s comparatively low death rate. COVID-19 has proven itself to be the plague of the century. The only way the virus will be defeated is if we protect ourselves, and those around us, as those all of our lives depend on it.
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