The COVID-19 pandemic has shifted the ways in which all of us live and work. It’s hard to imagine what our lives would look like without the Internet in this strange time. You’ve probably put in significant efforts to enable yourself to work remotely. You may have found new ways of socializing via Zoom parties and regularly scheduled family visits using video chat.

Life has changed drastically during the pandemic - so, too, has how we mourn the loss of our loved ones. To understand how COVID-19 is affecting funeral planning, the most important thing to keep in mind is the effect of social distancing. Hosting a traditional, large-scale memorial service has become impossible for the foreseeable future; there’s too much of a health risk. 

Let’s take a moment, here, to acknowledge the grief of families going through loss at what’s already a tremendously difficult time. We feel for you, and we’re here for you.

Having some level of ceremony and ritual has been a cornerstone of the grieving process since time immemorial. Even wild animals, like elephants, have been shown to attach ritual significance to death. Social gathering, too, is an integral part of coping with loss for many people. Friends and family are known to come together to support one another, providing food, support, and love to the bereaved. These activities have become more difficult at a time of social distancing; they are, however, still of the utmost importance. As such, adaptations have been made.

You can find funeral homes who are performing funerals with dramatic physical distancing measures in place; the ban on gatherings of more than 10 people is still in effect, so these ceremonies are, by necessity, small-scale. Another practice is the drive-through funeral, in which cars can pull up one at a time to a window in order to pay their respects to the family. 

Virtual funerals (or virtual memorials) are arguably the most popular of these adaptations. There are a number of ways to go about hosting a virtual funeral, but they generally fall into two categories: pre-recorded and streamed. Some families opt to do both.

In both cases, the family gets to choose who has access to the virtual memorial. A secure link is provided that can be shared with individuals, posted on social media, or distributed in any other way the family sees fit. These links may be backed with passwords in order to ensure that only the intended audience may view the ceremony. 

A streamed service is wonderful because it invites participation from the attendees. By streaming the service, you can enable friends and family who aren’t in attendance physically, to speak and share. This is useful in the case of self-isolated individuals and for maintaining social distancing guidelines. It’s also tremendously helpful for individuals who are living outside of Saskatoon who would like to participate.

Archiving a streamed service is incredibly easy. Those who prefer a recorded service can opt for that instead; it allows for a bit more editing than a streamed service. No matter which virtual funeral type you choose, you’ll be able to keep the memories from the service.

Memorial forests have been gaining popularity for some time now; the trees and plaques make an ideally beautiful space to walk through and reminisce. During the pandemic, these forests provide a number of other benefits. They’re a place that your family can go to stroll while remaining physically distant and adhering to the Government of Saskatchewan’s guidelines. They’re also a gorgeous place to host a virtual ceremony from - surrounded by trees, the leaves shimmering in the sunlight.

There’s no easy time to lose a loved one, but it’s important to acknowledge that right now is particularly difficult. Virtual services are highly customizable. Get in touch with us, and we’ll help you plan one to honour your loved one. Though we have to be physically distant, we don’t have to be socially distant - we can still come together to support one another in times of need. We are always available for you and your family.