Trump visits COVID-19-modified Arlington for Memorial Day

President Donald Trump laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery in a Memorial Day ceremony altered by the coronavirus pandemic. The historic resting place in Northern Virginia livestreamed the ceremony and the president skipped his usual speech at the site. Trump later paid tribute to the country’s fallen soldiers in a ceremony at Fort McHenry in Baltimore, the site that inspired Francis Scott Key to write “The Star-Spangled Banner” during the War of 1812.

How has Arlington adjusted for COVID-19? The Department of Defense requires face coverings for all visitors and limits access to only 10 family members for gravesite visitations and funerals. But many families of veterans have been unable to travel to Arlington for funerals during the pandemic. “Our heart goes out to them for not being able to be there with their loved one as they are laid to rest,” said Capt. Doug Rohde, a guard at the cemetery.

Dig deeper: Read Julia Seymour’s report in Compassion on the effects of isolation on the mental health of veterans.

Editor’s note: WORLD has updated this report since its initial posting.