WORCESTER- Since the COVID-19 outbreak, funeral homes have drastically changed their way of business. With the requirement of social distancing, local funeral homes are allowing no more than 10 people in a room, even for wake gatherings.
Stephen Gemelli, general manager of Mercadante Funeral Home located at 370 Plantation St., told ThisWeekInWorcester.com, “As funeral directors, we are a very important part of maintaining public health, so we take the limitation of people and social distancing very seriously.”
“It has been the worst conversation a funeral director could have with a family, telling them there is a restriction on people,” Gemelli added.
In order to adhere to social distancing while accommodating families, Mercadante Funeral Home is hosting only one service at a time, and are offering live streams of services on their website for those who were unable to be there in person.
To further provide for families who are grieving, Gemelli said Mercadante may be developing a way for the streams to be accessed after the service concludes for those who weren’t able to watch while it was happening in real-time.
Gemelli recommends checking obituary pages for creative ways to say goodbye to a loved one, whether it be a card or a letter.
“Although things are a bit impersonal for now, we are still here to support and provide service to the families who have lost a loved one,” Gemelli said. “This is a job that still needs to be done even during a pandemic. I just hope that people can hold out, stay with their families, stay safe, stay inside and then hopefully life can go on as normal.”
Mercadante Funeral Home and Chapel remains open and can be contacted at (508) 754- 0486.
Lead photo: Mercadante Funeral Home and Chapel/Facebook
