CORONAVIRUS PRECAUTIONS
As the coronavirus (COVID-19) situation evolves, Cardinal Funeral Homes is putting the health and safety of our guests, staff and community at the highest priority.
We are following direction from Ontario Public Health, Health Canada and the Bereavement Authority of Ontario and request that family members or guests who are experiencing any cold or flu-like symptoms (e.g., fever, cough, shortness of breath), have traveled out of province or been in contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19, refrain from visiting our funeral homes at this time.
Effective immediately the following precautions and procedures have been implemented:
As of June 13, the Ontario government has relaxed the restrictions that had previously been imposed on funeral homes, in recognition of the importance of being with loved ones during the moments that matter most. Funeral homes in Ontario are now able to accommodate up to a maximum of 30% capacity indoors and up to 50 attendees for outdoor ceremonies.
Due to the large size of our buildings, we at Cardinal Funeral Homes have determined that we can safely accommodate up to 50 guests per funeral service at our Bathurst location and up to 40 at our Annette location, which will allow more friends and family to participate in saying goodbye to your loved one in person.
In order to keep everyone as safe as possible, we kindly ask that all guests continue to practice physical distancing, refrain from shaking hands or having direct contact with each other if not in the same household or their established 10-person social circle.
Gatherings will be limited to up to 50 people at a time in a visitation suite. When coming for a visitation, guests are asked to pay their respects to the deceased, acknowledge the family from a safe distance and exit the suite. Guest seating has been arranged to maintain physical distancing and will remain in place for all services and visitation in the funeral home. Once guests exit the visitation suite, we kindly ask them to exit the funeral home to allow other guests the same opportunity.
Beginning June 15, funeral services are one again permitted at churches and places of worship. However, each place of worship will have its own capacity restrictions and timelines for re-opening, so we will ensure that you are aware of the capacity limits for the location of the service you are attending.
Rites of Committal will take place with up to 50 guests at the cemetery, depending on the specific restrictions of the cemetery. Receiving lines at the cemetery will not be conducted in order to minimize direct contact between guests.
Our Coffee Lounge remains closed and receptions are not available. Please do not bring outside food or beverages into our funeral homes.
All of our bathrooms are equipped with disinfecting hand soap and cleaned regularly. We also have increased the frequency of cleaning and disinfecting our public areas.
Hand sanitizer and masks are available upon entry and throughout the Funeral Homes. As well, signage has been posted throughout to remind all visitors to adhere to our new precautions and procedures.
Condolence Resources. Please reach out to families in their time of need. Friends should sign our online register books and/or send flowers, but not attend the visitation or funeral services if they do not feel comfortable to do so or are experiencing COVID-related symptoms. While visitations and services are limited to smaller numbers of guests, families appreciate your show of support through this very difficult time.
For over 95 years, Cardinal Funeral Homes’ mission has been to provide exceptional and meaningful funeral service experiences for the families we serve through teamwork, dedication and professionalism, as well as to provide comprehensive bereavement resources. We will continue to make every effort to support our client families through their grieving process in this difficult time.
In order for us to continue to serve our families well and in a safe manner, we thank you for your understanding and cooperation with these preventative measures that are temporarily in place.
Jimmy and Andrew Cardinal