A Ravensmead family say a funeral company gave their mother a bad send-off and want to send a warning to others before making use of the services of the SA Funeral Trust.
Monica Witbooi, a community leader speaking on behalf of the family, says 81-year-old Sophia Collins passed away on January 1 and was buried on January 8 at the Maitland cemetery.
“I made contact with the company from the start and from then on we just got attitude and bad service,” explains Monica.
“The family went to their offices in Goodwood and they only gave them two coffin options and then told them that they could only get 30 minutes each at the house for viewing, at the church and at the graveyard.
“We told them it’s unacceptable because Sophia has been a customer for over 20 years and she was even paid up to cover January, so they should have had better options for her.”
On the day of the funeral, Monica said the family were left shocked and disgusted when they discovered that the grave site was never booked.
“We sat in the offices when they called to make the booking for January 8 but we do not know what happened because there was no hole for Sophia when we got there.
“Her body stood out in 34-degree heat for an hour and then they just put her body into another hole.
“That was no way to treat her because she was well-loved in the community and the grave was very shallow.
“We later saw that the cross was placed at her feet and not her head.”
Eddie Meiring, manager of the SA Funeral Trust Fund, denied any wrongdoing.
“The booking was made in front of the family, so there must have been a mistake by either the board or the cemetery.
“We did find a solution while everything else at the funeral was done according to protocol,” he says.