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Gov. Tim Walz has directed all flags at state and federal buildings in Minnesota to be flown at half-staff from sunrise to sunset on Tuesday and on the 19th of every month through 2020 to remember, mourn and honor lives lost due to COVID-19, according to a press release.

“As of May 15, 2020, 683 of our mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, husbands and wives, friends and neighbors, have passed due to COVID-19,” reads the proclamation issued by Walz. “Minnesotans come together as one community in these challenging moments to mourn and support each other.”

“This disease is unpredictable and has devastated so many Minnesota families, including my own,” said Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan. “The people who have been lost are not just numbers, and they are not forgotten.”

Individuals, businesses and other organizations also are encouraged to join in lowering their flags to honor Minnesotans who have lost their lives to COVID-19 and their families.