MOURNERS WELCOME
Funeral size limits eased
The funeral industry is easing back into larger family and community gatherings as COVID-19 restrictions slowly lift, and that’s welcome news for grieving families, say local funeral home operators.
“We see this as a significant step right now and the beginning of, in due time, of progressively allowing for more and more of those restrictions to be lifted for families to come together in community,” said Scott Lockwood, CEO of Windsor Chapel Funeral Home.
Lockwood said the province eased the previous restrictions that allowed only 10 people to gather at a time in a funeral home and are now allowing 30 per cent occupancy.
“It really opens up opportunity for a lot of families to have their whole family in the room and also room for guests,” he said. “It allows much more opportunity for public visitations and gatherings to start again within those limitations.”
Brian Parent, president of Families First Funeral Home, said the new rules allow for larger gatherings at both funeral homes and places of worship.
Parent said the 30-per-cent-capacity limit means “almost all churches could handle large enough numbers to get all of the family and close friends in for a funeral service and most all of the funeral homes can open up enough rooms to get all of the family and close friends in for the funeral service.
“This is really good news for families,” Parent said. “They no longer need to put off or delay having a funeral at all.
Parent said the last couple months during the COVID-19 pandemic have been really tough for families. “While they’ve had family visitation, they oftentimes couldn’t all be in the same room.”
Many funeral homes schedule visitation times, allowing for social distancing to happen and for families to see almost all of the friends who want to attend, Parent said.
Lockwood said restrictions on graveside services have also been reduced.
The province is now allowing up to 50 people to gather for outdoor ceremonies.
“We were also limited to only 10 people around the graveside for funeral services,” Lockwood said. “Now we’re allowed up to 50, which is certainly a great benefit for families and friends for gathering.
“When a loved one dies, one of our greatest needs is the need for community, for coming together in support for one another. And certainly throughout this pandemic that very need has created a lot of challenges with the restrictions.”