To comfort the bereaved
A family-run firm of funeral directors is determined to provide respect and dignity to those deprived of ‘proper’ funerals during the pandemic. Photographer Alon Skuy records their daily efforts in words and pictures
As coronavirus cases surged in SA, and with strict burial regulations in place, the Johannesburg funeral parlour Thom Kight & Company — like undertakers around the country and the world — had to adapt how they helped families say goodbye to their loved ones.
Neil Keight, owner of the nearly 40-year-old business (the “e” in Keight was dropped from the company name), says Covid-19 has meant not only taking extra precautions to keep staff safe, but also finding new ways of extending empathy to the bereaved.
If Covid-19 is proven or even suspected, protection measures must include the use of body bags with the exterior disinfected, among other stringent protocols.
As of last week the funeral parlour had received more than 100 people who’d died from — or were suspected to have died from — complications arising from the coronavirus. As Gauteng became the country’s Covid-19 epicentre, the Keights and their colleagues made preparations for rising numbers. These have in fact decreased recently, but they cannot let their guard down.
Gary van Biljon, who has worked as an undertaker at the funeral parlour for 21 years, and whose son, Allan, is also employed at the company, has dealt with more than 15 Covid-related calls in the past couple of weeks. He says he tries to do his best for the families of those who have died. Dignity has always been his watchword. As a personal touch he places a single rose, respectfully, on the deceased.
His job is hardest when it involves children, says Van Biljon snr, who lives within walking distance of the parlour with his wife, their two sons and two pet chinchillas.
The protocols surrounding Covid-19 mean many people have died without their loved ones present, and the ensuing funeral and burial restrictions also cause much distress to those left behind.
This small band of professionals are trying their best to ease the sadness of families who cannot carry out traditional mourning practices, or hold the funerals their loved ones are due, according to their beliefs and cultures.
The undertakers have even served as stand-in mourners because the bereaved have not been allowed to travel. As a team, they comfort and support each other. They have not become hardened, no matter how many deaths they confront every day.
“The biggest skill an undertaker can have is compassion,” says Van Biljon. “You can’t do it if you don’t have compassion.”
Many people have died without their loved ones present