‘WHAT’S DONE IS DONE’

‘Tried to Do Everything Right’: Thirty Infected With Coronavirus at Family Funeral in Minnesota

“Of course when you’re grieving, you let your guard down,” one attendee said.

Thirty family members in Minnesota contracted the novel coronavirus after attending a funeral together in July, despite their attempts to take extra precautions amid the pandemic. “We tried to do everything right, but of course when you’re grieving, you let your guard down,” said Stephanie Schindler, who attended the funeral held for her father, 78-year-old Francis Perreault. “One of my friends that got sick was wearing a mask the whole time. But of course when you’re crying, you’re going to be rubbing your face.” Attendees wore masks, but Schindler said the mourners became more intimate after the service at Francis Xavier Catholic Church, holding hands, hugging, and crying together. Five of the 30 infected family members were hospitalized, several of whom have already been released. “What’s done is done. We have to go forward, we have to grieve,” Schindler said. “We have to pray for each other and raise each other up with support.”