(Fargo, ND) -- The effects of COVID-19 continue to be felt within funeral homes in the region.
The claim comes from Funeral Director of Hanson-Runsvold Funeral Home John Runsvold, who says the pandemic has changed many aspects of their business.
"Oh [the services] are smaller, that's for sure," Runsvold said," They were limited at the beginning to - I want to say seven people when it first started. That was tough...I know I had a neighbor who watched his grandmother's funeral from our parking lot."
The funeral home modernized in an attempt to give people the ability to view their loved ones, while respecting gathering limits put in place at the time. "We could live-stream. So that became very popular."
The funeral home also saw a jump in the use of their crematoriums. Runsvold says the option to cremate loved ones has increased by about 10 percent, accounting for roughly 70 percent of burial options chosen.
