SAN ANTONIO – For people who have lost a loved one due to COVID-19, the inauguration of President Joe Biden evoked different emotions for them.
“I really wish she was here. I mean, I miss her a lot,” said Glenn Hernandez, whose daughter died in July of COVID-19 complications.
Hernandez said he thinks about his daughter, Osanette, every day since the the 22-year-old nursing student passed away.
Hernandez said he would call his daughter on Inauguration Day to watch the festivities.
“Every four years you have that opportunity to just see this event. This year was our first year that I can’t call her to tell her to do that, but I still hold her in my heart,” Hernandez said.
Hernandez said he is feeling hopeful about the future now that Biden is president.
“In the hopes that God can use these people to do better for our country. To make things better for us. For the people that are sick. For the people that are going through situations, going through job losses,” he said.
For Brackettville resident Patricia Sifuentes, she hopes the Biden administration brings unity and wishes for transparency moving forward.
“Hopefully we have that transparency with this new president, where he’ll be able to, you know, to walk beside us in this recovery process of the pandemic,” Sifuentes said.
In October, Sifuentes lost her husband, Eloy, to COVID-19.
Sifuentes said her husband, who was a U.S. Air Force veteran who worked at Laughlin Air Force Base, was devoted to his country and family.
“I think about him in days like this,” she said.
Sifuentes hopes Biden’s administration continues to focus on those impacted by COVID-19.
“I’m hoping that this inauguration is, this new chapter of the Americas, is going to be a good one for everybody,” she said.