• UK
  • World
    • USA
  • Entertainment
    • Celeb
    • Showbiz
    • Magazine
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Gaming
  • Tech
  • Science
    • Education
  • Insurance
  • Business
  • Auto
  • ToS/Contact
    • ToS
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact
NewsExplored
  • UK
  • World
    • USA
  • Entertainment
    • Celeb
    • Showbiz
    • Magazine
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Gaming
  • Tech
  • Science
    • Education
  • Insurance
  • Business
  • Auto
  • ToS/Contact
    • ToS
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • LinkedIn

  • Tumblr

  • RSS

UK

Coronavirus: Vicar’s story of shock and grief in Cardiff parish

Coronavirus: Vicar’s story of shock and grief in Cardiff parish
Newsexplored
16th August 2020
5
SHARES
ShareTweet
SubscribeRedditGoogleWhatsappStumbleuponPinterestDiggLinkedinTumblrTelegram
Views:
15

Media playback is unsupported on your device

Media caption“There was a real sense of shock. Suddenly everything that was familiar had stopped.”

“I just used to lock myself in my car and cry after every funeral.”

For Canon Jan Gould, of the Church of the Resurrection in Ely, Cardiff, the pandemic has been an intensely emotional and challenging time.

She has ministered about 60 funerals since it began, with a third due to Covid-19 and several suicides.

“Coping with that, with the numbers that we were dealing with, was very, very difficult,” she said.

Parts of Ely are among the poorest 10% of areas in the Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation.

‘Enormous impact’

And Canon Gould said in the early days of the pandemic there was a “real sense of shock” in the community, with four suicides in the first week.

“Suddenly everything that was familiar had stopped.

data-ad-format="auto">

“Many people had stopped working, some were on furlough, some just lost their jobs and had nothing coming in at all. There was a huge impact on people’s mental wellbeing, which I think is common in many areas of poor income.

“Funerals went up anyway. But we had quite a few suicides early on, and they were all young men who lost their jobs and couldn’t be furloughed because they hadn’t been in their jobs long enough.

“Normally we’d probably expect four or five suicides a year. So to get four in the first week just spoke volumes really about just what an enormous impact this was having on people’s lives.”

  • Information and support is available via BBC Action Line

The Samaritans says suicide is very complex and not generally connected to a single factor or event, with a wide range of psychological, social, economic and cultural risk factors interacting to increase an individual’s level of risk.

And there is no evidence to suggest the rise Canon Gould has seen locally has been reflected across the UK.


But the Samaritans said this week that its most recent study found 42% of the 2,000 men they questioned said coronavirus has had a negative impact on their mental health.

“As time has gone on it has got easier for people, and word has started to get out there that the support is there. So hopefully you know people are turning to that support now,” Canon Gould said.

Image caption Canon Gould said the church would normally have been full for funerals, with hundreds from Ely attending

Funeral restrictions ‘really difficult’

There have been numerous cruel consequences of the pandemic but for Canon Gould, the limit on the number of mourners at funerals and cremations has been among the toughest to bear in a community so closely knit.

After lockdown began, the numbers of mourners was restricted to five and then 10, although up to 30 people are now able to attend outdoor, graveside funerals in parts of Wales.

“Normally, for funerals of young people we would expect several hundred people to be coming to the service and we were only allowed 10 – and that was really, really difficult,” said the canon.

“It was absolutely horrific, really, to go through that trying to support people through it.

“I had one funeral and the lady who died had 12 children. And we could only have 10 of them at the funeral, because that was the rules. And so that family had to decide which two were not going to go say goodbye to their mother.”

Image copyright BBC Sport
Image caption Canon Jan Gould has been at the Church of the Resurrection in Ely for 14 years

‘Everything was about screens’

Public services in places of worship were cancelled in Wales from the end of March, forcing churches such as Canon Gould’s to embrace online services and even print copies of sermons to be posted through the doors of parishioners.

The amount of time spent on the computer – including meetings with families on Zoom and hosting services from her home via Facebook Live – has affected the minister’s sleep patterns and exacerbated pre-existing issues she has with her memory.

“Everything has been about screens in these last four months and it has been really tough coping with that,” she said.

But after the Church of the Resurrection and others reopened their doors for services last month, Canon Gould said she has been left looking back on lockdown as a time when the light outweighed the dark.

“I think this pandemic has really brought out the best in so many people and we’ve seen such an amazing community spirit here,” she said.

“The things that people have been getting up to, it’s been really wonderful – supporting their neighbours, even neighbours they’ve maybe never spoken to.

“I know for a lot of people it has been a really tough time, a lot of people have lost loved ones. And that’s something that you never get over.

“But I think there have been some really good things, and I think those are the things that give us hope for the future.”

Image copyright YouTube/Church of the Resurrection
Image caption Members of the church sing Hosanna for Pentecost Sunday on their YouTube channel

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Google+ (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Share on Skype (Opens in new window)

Related

Related Itemscardiffcoronavirusgriefparishshockstoryvicar
UK
16th August 2020
Newsexplored @newsexploredweb

Related Itemscardiffcoronavirusgriefparishshockstoryvicar

More in UK

  • Read More
    The Papers: UK ‘feeling the strain’ but gets vaccine ‘boost’

    Views:15 By BBC NewsStaff image captionThe Financial Times is just one of Saturday’s papers that leads with...

    Newsexplored 16th August 2020
  • Read More
    Chorley 0-1 Wolverhampton Wanderers: Vitinha’s superb goal sees Wolves past non-league opponents

    Views:15 Non-league Chorley were unable to emulate the heroes from 1986 by causing an FA Cup sensation...

    Newsexplored 16th August 2020
  • Read More
    Skewen flood: Mine shaft ‘blow out’ may have flooded village

    Views:15 Published 2 hours ago media captionTeresa Dalling says a river of orange water rushed through the...

    Newsexplored 16th August 2020
  • Read More
    English councils battling financial ruin

    Views:15 By Jennifer ScottOnline political reporter, BBC News image copyrightReuters Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, warnings have been...

    Newsexplored 16th August 2020
  • Read More
    Newspaper headlines: £500 Covid payment and flood devastation

    Views:15 By BBC NewsStaff image captionThe Guardian leads on suggestions ministers are considering giving everyone who tests...

    Newsexplored 16th August 2020
  • Read More
    Covid in Scotland: More than 400 care homes investigated over deaths

    Views:15 By Andrew PickenBBC Scotland News image copyrightGetty Images A special Crown Office unit set up to...

    Newsexplored 16th August 2020
  • Read More
    Liverpool 0-1 Burnley: Ashley Barnes scores winner as Reds’ unbeaten run ends

    Views:15 Ashley Barnes scored just his second goal of the season for Burnley Liverpool’s 68-game unbeaten home...

    Newsexplored 16th August 2020
  • Read More
    Storm Christoph: Evacuations amid floods and snow

    Views:15 Published 14 minutes ago image copyrightPA Media image captionHomes near Lymm in Cheshire were among those...

    Newsexplored 16th August 2020
  • Read More
    Storm Christoph in pictures

    Views:15 Storm Christoph has swept across the UK, bringing heavy rain, flooding and snow to parts of...

    Newsexplored 16th August 2020
  • Read More
    Storm Christoph: Homes evacuated in Wales amid severe flood warning

    Views:15 image captionUp to 30 people have been forced out of their homes in Bangor-on-Dee, Wrexham Homes...

    Newsexplored 16th August 2020
  • Read More
    Newspaper headlines: ‘New dawn for America’ as Joe Biden takes over

    Views:15 By BBC NewsStaff image captionPhotographs from Joe Biden’s inauguration as the 46th US president feature across...

    Newsexplored 16th August 2020
  • Read More
    Scotland’s papers: Restrictions ‘for months’ and Trump’s exit

    Views:15 Daily Record The Herald The Scotsman The Scottish Sun The National The Times Daily Mail Daily...

    Newsexplored 16th August 2020
Scroll for more
Tap
data-ad-format="auto">
NewsExplored

NewsExplored - Making sure all the latest news is explored?

Contact us for help

  • Popular

  • Latest

  • Comments

  • Bridgerton: Everything you need to know about the Netflix drama
    Entertainment25th December 2020
  • The Papers: ‘Fortress Britain’ and ‘modern miracle workers’
    UK15th January 2021
  • Australian Open: Heather Watson among 47 players to quarantine in Melbourne after Covid cases on flights
    Sports16th January 2021
  • Fifa 21 and Frozen 2 top digital sales of 2020
    Tech8th January 2021
  • Kamala Harris: What the vice-president did on her first day
    USA21st January 2021
  • Biden inauguration: New president to be sworn in amid Trump snub
    USA20th January 2021
  • Biden inauguration: Democrat to be sworn in as Trump leaves office
    USA20th January 2021
  • Biden inauguration rehearsal paused amid US Capitol lockdown
    USA18th January 2021
  • Les Rehrer says:

    Hello Its me :P and thanks for this post

  • optumrx login says:

    Thank For News.

  • Kent Laatsch says:

    Please let me know if you're looking for a writer…

  • Bob says:

    RT News was where I learned that Erdogan controlled isis.…

Copyright © 2018 Top News Theme. Theme by MVP Themes, powered by Wordpress.

Coronavirus: Shielding paused for 130,000 in Wales
Coronavirus: Appetite grows for home working and local lockdowns
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok