Funerals go on during coronavirus outbreak, with alterations
William G. Neal Funeral Home sits at 925 Allison Avenue in Washington.
An aerial view of William G. Neal Funeral Home in Washington
The coronavirus pandemic may have upended life in almost every corner of the globe, but the most fundamental things in our existence still proceed no matter what is happening in the world at large.
Namely, births and deaths.
While there has been only one death in Pennsylvania as a result of the coronavirus, residents in this area and everywhere else are still perishing from heart disease, strokes, cancer, accidents, old age and all the other everyday causes of death. That being the case, funerals are still going on, though funeral home directors are making significant alterations to how they conduct services.
For instance, the William G. Neal Funeral Homes in Washington has outlined a policy that is in effect through April 6 that does away with open public visitations.
Small, private, family-only visitations will be allowed at the funeral home by invitation only, and the times will not be published. Also, memorial services for individuals who have been cremated will happen at a later date. At no charge to the family, funeral services can be streamed online.
A letter released by Michael Neal, owner of the funeral homes, said, “Our utmost concern is the safety of the public and the families we serve.”
Neal also explained that he recently attended a meeting of a funeral home association, and he was struck by how many of his fellow owners and directors “had their heads in the sand” when it came to the coronavirus.
“It’s foolish to think you can have 50 to 100 people at a funeral,” he said.
Scott Beinhauer, director of operations for Beinhauer Family Funeral Homes and Cremation Services in McMurray, said “all of our services will be private, for family only.” He also said services can be made available online at no extra cost to families.
The Pennsylvania Funeral Directors Association has provided guidance to funeral homes across the commonwealth, recommending in a letter to its members Monday by David Peake Jr., the organization’s president, that bodies be held for two weeks, have only small family gatherings rather than public viewings, have memorial services later and no prearrangements be made unless death is imminent.
“There is no one that is going to tell you to shut your business,” the letter states. “However, common sense dictates you should severely limit any interaction with other human beings.”
A family that had scheduled a visitation at Warchol Funeral Home in Bridgeville decided to postpone it simply because they thought no one would attend, according to owner Dave Warchol. He is suggesting services be limited to immediate family members.
“I’m going to recommend that everything be private,” he said.
At Sollon Funeral Home in Canonsburg, management is considering having a staff member pass out prayer cards rather than having visitors take them themselves. They are also contemplating giving pens to each visitor to sign the guest registry, rather than having them use a common pen.
“We’ve never been involved with anything like this,” said Phillip Sollon, the funeral home’s owner. “Our main concern is to help the family.”