Funeral industry in Badenoch and Strathspey has 'changed forever' after the year of the pandemic
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The strath’s oldest funeral service business has looked back on a ‘dramatic and challenging’ year of Covid-19 and believes the industry has been changed forever.
Grantown-based John Ross Funeral Services has been assessing the impact of the virus on the sector and the legacy it could create.
Owner Nikki Ross said it has been a really challenging past year for the funeral industry. And she has had experience on both sides having sadly lost her well-known and loved dad, John.
Ms Ross said: “When Covid first struck we were told to prepare for the worst. That, along with the initial shortage of PPE, was a worrying time for our team.
“However, we have been very fortunate in the strath and deaths caused by Covid have been relatively few. I think we are really fortunate to live where we do.”
The pandemic wrought significant changes from the start. Ms Ross said: “At the beginning it was strictly immediate family members only.
“This was thankfully relaxed and 20 people were allowed to attend.
“I think the hardest part has been the lockdown restrictions on funeral teas and families being unable to gather after the funeral service. On a positive note, families have said they have liked the smaller, more intimate funeral services.
“We’ve found that funerals have been more individual, with families finding unique and special ways of celebrating the life of their loved one.
“We have visited farms and golf courses, crossed shinty pitches and even travelled with the coffin on the back of a lorry.
“We work with so many fantastic people who make what we do possible – ministers, humanists, our florists, pipers, venues providing funeral teas, cemetery and crematorium staff to name but a few.
“All have helped us to ensure we are able to give the best possible service in the safest possible way during this pandemic.”
She said funerals had changed dramatically in other ways too: “As we pass through our towns and villages it is really special and very moving to see the streets lined with folks who have taken the time to pay their respects.
“When my own dad John died in June, hundreds of people turned out to pay their respects.
“Although sad, it was a very special day and something I will never forget.
“Perhaps during these unprecedented times, we might start making some new traditions that will remain for some time into the future.”
The firm has just expanded and opened a new office on Grantown’s High Street.
Ms Ross said: “We needed bigger office space and when the opportunity to buy new premises arose we felt it was the right time.
“It is important to be able to offer our families a welcoming environment when making funeral arrangements for a loved one and we hope that we have achieved creating a warm and comfortable space.
“My dad and I had always planned to do this together, but when his health deteriorated we decided to wait. He is sadly no longer with us but I think that he would have approved!
“We are able to operate Covid safely and at the moment people often prefer meeting us in the office rather than in their own homes. However we are always available for home visits.
“We hope to hold an open day at some point in the future but it’s difficult to say when that is going to be at the moment.”
The firm opened its Kingussie office just before the first lockdown last March. Ms Ross said: “We felt it was a good time to open at that end of the strath and it is much more convenient for our clients in Badenoch.”
Both offices have remained fully operational during the pandemic.
