The state will begin scheduling those 16 and older starting April 5th. For Nico Marasco, the last 12 months have been a challenge â he lost Ralph Marasco, his father, best friend and business partner, to COVID-19 on March 24, 2020. It was the first COVID-19 death of a Nebraskan. Many others would be lost to the virus â more than 500,000 across the U.S. While the pace has slowed because of reduced spread and vaccinations, those losses continue to reverberate. Nico Marasco first faced the challenge of finding a way to grieve and to properly celebrate his fatherâs life amid changing COVID-19 restrictions. The family ultimately held a service and a socially distanced celebration of life on July 11, which would have been the senior Marascoâs 60th birthday.