Making the Most of a Virtual Funeral Service
With the spread of COVID-19 throughout the United States, having an in-person traditional funeral service for your loved one will be impossible. However, many people are turning to virtual funerals.
Having virtual funeral services at a Roanoke, VA funeral home is becoming the new norm as COVID-19 infections rise and restrictions on gatherings are becoming more stringent. As unsettling as this may be to you and your family when your loved one dies, it’s a new reality that’s with us for the time being.
It's okay to be upset because you can’t have a traditional funeral. The whole funeral process is really designed to meet two needs. One of those needs to allow friends and family members to honor and pay tribute to your deceased loved one. The other need is to provide comfort, sympathy, and support to you and your family as you begin to grieve your loss.
Neither of those needs is fully met with a virtual funeral service, but they are met enough to enable you and your family to feel that others are participating in paying their respects to your loved one and that comfort and support is present. Not having some semblance of this after your loved one dies can often seem as if there is no closure.
Your funeral director can help you with the details of having a virtual funeral service – and they will also make sure, if you decide you want it, that you can have a traditional funeral service for your loved one once all the public gathering restrictions are lifted.
Your funeral director is limited in how many people will be able to attend your loved one’s funeral in person at the funeral home. If they exceed this limit, they can face very steep fines and can lose their license.
So, it’s imperative that you and your family choose wisely when selecting in-person attendees. It may mean that even some immediate family members may not be able to attend the actual service. If that’s the case, then you can make sure those family members are able to be present at the graveside service (and the family members who were at the funeral service can stay home).
Your funeral director may be able to livestream the funeral service (with readings, eulogies, spiritual comfort, and music) from the funeral home. However, if they don’t yet have this technology, you or another family member can livestream it using a digital device and the funeral home’s WiFi connection.
There are several popular applications that families are using to livestream the funeral services for their loved ones so that people can participate in the service virtually.
Facebook Messenger’s video chat is one such application. Up to 50 people can join the video chat simultaneously and watch the entire funeral service. Zoom is another application that can be used to livestream the funeral. Up to 100 people can connect to watch the funeral service, but the free version of Zoom does have a 40-minute limit on livestreaming.
Skype is an older application that does virtual gatherings. Its limit is also 50 people. It may be harder for non-technical people to use because it has been upgraded by Microsoft in a non-intuitive way.
Avoid using livestreaming capabilities that are embedded in social media applications. An example of this would be Facebook Live. Unlike the private video chat in Facebook Messenger that lets you invite attendees, Facebook Live streaming can be seen by anyone who is on your Friends list (some of these people you may not even know), and that makes your funeral service more open and less personal.
For more information on virtual funeral services at Roanoke, VA funeral home, our compassionate and experienced staff at Conner-Bowman Funeral Home & Crematory is here to help.
