Funeral directors adapt to a new pandemic normal

Dec 14, 20200

Aaron Lavinsky, Star Tribune count

The family of Jim Quinn, who died last month of COVID-19 at age 91, was able to hold a funeral mass for him last week at Holy Cross Catholic Church in northeast Minneapolis. Grandson Tony Quinn talked to his daughter Rosalie, 7, above.

An early riser, Willmar funeral director Nathan Streed usually begins his days around 6 a.m. and clocks out at 5:30 most evenings.

But recently his phone just keeps ringing, as COVID-19 continues to spread rapidly throughout Minnesota, claiming more than 4,400 lives and counting.

"You don't turn it off at night," said Streed, owner of Harvey Anderson and Johnson Funeral Homes, with six locations in central Minnesota. "It's always on your mind."

https://www.startribune.com/funeral-directors-adapt-to-a-new-pandemic-normal/573383641/