HALIFAX A Nova Scotia funeral home has gone public with an unusual problem: unclaimed cremated remains. Some of the ashes have been sitting for nearly half a century, and the funeral home owner says it s time they were laid to rest. “It’s not right to have people here that should be with their families or buried in a family plot with their spouse, significant other, brother, sister parents - whatever the case may be,” Bruce Varner, owner and managing director of Mattatall-Varner Funeral Home in Truro, told CTV News. Varner posted a list of unclaimed remains on the company website and Facebook page in early May and has been making contact with several families who’ve come to claim them.
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Posted: Apr 17, 2021 6:00 AM AT | Last Updated: April 17
Funeral directors say changes around technology and flow around funeral homes are likely here to stay, and will serve Nova Scotians better.(Ben Nelms/CBC)
Funeral directors in Nova Scotia have had a year of trying to comfort families with just their eyes, and bringing loved ones from around the world together virtually.
Although it s been difficult, those in the industry say many of the changes have been for the better and will allow more flexibility and safety even after the COVID-19 pandemic is under control. Normally for Maritimers, we come together, we hug, we cry, we talk, we tell stories and we eat. We removed all that, said Dwayne Isenor, the location manager for Cruikshanks Funeral Home in Halifax.
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The COVID-19 pandemic and current health orders are leaving an often-ignored industry to grieve: the funeral industry.
Manitoba Funeral Service Association s President Kevin Sweryd says while funeral homes are doing their best to follow the health orders, it is difficult to help a family celebrate a lost family member when they are not all about to be in the same room. Families are heartbroken. I personally had the eleventh granddaughter call me one day saying is it really true I can t come to my grandma s funeral? Sweryd says.
Sweryd is the President and Funeral Director of Bardal Funeral Home. (Kevin Sweryd/Facebook)
EDMONTON With Alberta’s first shipment of vaccines expected to arrive next week, an industry that deals with victims of COVID-19 wants its workers higher on the eligibility list. The head of the Funeral Service Association of Alberta told CTV News Edmonton he was “surprised” and “disappointed” to learn from Alberta Health that funeral staff, particularly directors, will not be included in Phase 1 of Alberta’s vaccine rollout plan. Weber said Alberta Health has told him funeral workers will be considered as part of Phase 2. “We obviously disagree that the funeral professional isn’t considered a frontline worker on this fight but we have no choice other than to accept what we’re being told,” said FSAA president Tyler Weber.