Pat Marmo, owner of Daniel J. Schaefer Funeral Home, walks through a viewing room set up to respect social distancing, April 2, 2020, in the Brooklyn borough of New York.When Ernie Morgan’s mother died last summer, he was upset that he couldn’t have a larger funeral attended by all her friends and family.
One year later, lockdown measures have eased in Ontario to a point where he could hold a larger memorial service, but he feels it’s too painful to revisit it after all this time.“It would be like ripping a Band Aid off a wound that’s already healing,” said Morgan who also operates Morse & Son Funeral Home in Niagara Falls.
Morse & Son Funeral Home has offered a simple livestream service using a stationary camera for years, but he’s now looking to bring on a part-time staffer responsible for producing a high quality livestream and video at the chapel and cemetery.“We’re not asking them to pay during COVID, but post-pandemic, we expect that client families that want that service will be willing to pay for it.”“It really is a life event, people love that it’s recorded,” Morgan said.
Both funeral homes said the changes in technology meant that most of their clients didn’t postpone funerals due to the pandemic.Hagel and Morgan said there still are a handful of people who are looking to schedule larger memorials now that COVID-19 restrictions are easing, but many are taking their time to ensure they don’t have to postpone again.
That makes sense. Among the only good things to come out of it were people were able to attend virtual shiva and the learning sessions dedicated to their loved ones from around the world.