A Chinese pear tree was planted in the municipal cemetery of Saint-Genis-Laval. Next to it, a plaque pays tribute to the victims of Covid-19. A symbol for families who were unable to accompany their deceased loved ones due to health measures. A place of meditation and remembrance.
Company
From daily life to major issues, discover the subjects that make up local society, such as justice, education, health and family.
France Télévisions uses your email address to send you the “Society” newsletter. You can unsubscribe at any time via the link at the bottom of this newsletter. Our privacy policy
Monday, December 9, the town of Saint-Genis-Laval inaugurated a plaque in commemoration of the victims of Covid-19 in the municipal cemetery in the presence of around a hundred people.
Covid-19 has left a lot of distress behind it. Difficult to have a precise figure, but the disease has caused more than 170,000 deaths according to the COVID-19 Victims Association. The total deprivation of ritual so essential to mourning, imposed by health measures, took away a precious moment from families. It is this missed opportunity that the association seeks to fill by inviting communities to create a space of contemplation for families.
In Saint-Genis-Laval, near Lyon, it was Nathalie de Sousa Ferreira who was at the origin of this tribute. The young woman lost her father during the pandemic. In March 2020, she saw both of her parents leave in two different ambulances. Only his mother came home. “It was during the first confinement, the first wave of victims of this virus. I did not have the right to touch him, not the right to kiss him, I just had the right to be next to him, to look at him. I told him everything was going to be okay, that we all loved him. And she didn't see him again. “Hospital visits were prohibited and barrier gestures were required everywhere.”
I don't even know if it's dad we buried […] We didn't have the right to the beer. I knew that one day I was going to lose him, but not like this. There, I was not able to touch him, kiss him, see his coffin close. Everything was stolen from us.
Nathalie de Souza Ferreira
The mayor, Marylène Millet, very quickly accepted her request for a commemorative plaque. A health professional in a nursing home, she experienced this period intensely. “The goal is to bring comfort to loved ones and to say that we have not forgotten them.“.
Like Saint-Genis-Laval, many cities have created a place to commemorate those who died from COVID. The families' goal is to now have a day of national tribute.
- -
