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JUDY WOODRUFF: We want to take 
another moment now to honor a 
group of individuals who lost

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their lives to the coronavirus.

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Here are their stories.

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Robert Shackelford 
dreamed of serving in the 
Army, but colorblindness 
forced him to find

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a different way to serve his 
country. So, for nearly 30 
years, he taught high school

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American history in 
Sarasota, Florida. Robert 
was also a longtime 
football coach. A fellow

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coach described him as a 
detailed and dedicated leader.

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Despite a busy schedule, the 
61-year-old always made time for 
family. He loved mailing cards

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to his daughter and 
grandson, and regularly 
visited his brother Steven, 
who has disabilities.

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Osanette Hernandez was a curious 
child and passionate about 
learning, her father said.

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Just 22 years old, she had 
dreamed of becoming a nurse. A 
shy, but gifted performer, she

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sang in her church choir 
and played clarinet in 
the high school marching 
band in San Antonio,

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Texas.

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Osanette was a devoted daughter, 
and started a business with 
her mom selling homemade cakes

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and cookies. She kept baking 
after her mother passed away 
last year to support her father

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and siblings.

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Forty-eight-year-old John 
Eric Swing was passionate 
about supporting the 
Asian-American community.

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He led efforts in Los Angeles 
to help residents and businesses 
through the pandemic. Co-workers

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said the former Marine 
Corps Reservist radiated 
positive energy. A foodie 
and an outdoorsman,

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his wife said he was happiest 
on the beach and when spending 
time with her and their

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six children.

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Su Thao was a hero for 
the Hmong people. After 
escaping communist 
Laos, he kept returning

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to rescue family members, and 
worked with the CIA on covert 
operations in the country.

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When he moved to Iowa in the 
1970s, he worked to bring 
more refugees to the U.S.

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Eventually, he settled 
in Fresno, California, 
where he directed 
documentaries, translated

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popular films into Hmong and 
even hosted a radio show. A 
father to nine, Su was 72 years

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old.

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Sawarrelita Redmond's suburban 
Chicago home was never empty. 
For the last 15 years, the

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mother of three ran her own day 
care, where she cared for kids 
all hours of the day, sometimes

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free of charge. Sawarrelita, 
or Nita, born in Mississippi 
as the 21st child of 22, also

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took in foster children 
who were in-between homes.

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She enjoyed playing cards on 
the weekends with friends, and 
was described by her daughter

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Jasmine as uplifting, easy-going 
and loved. Nita was 52.

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And our thanks to family 
members for sharing the stories 
of all these individuals.

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Our hearts go out to you 
and all those who've lost 
loved ones in this pandemic.