Devitt’s Funeral Directors marks 50 years in business

As one of Tipperary’s most experienced undertakers, James Devitt has had cause to reflect on life and death more than most.

On Thursday last, Devitt’s Funeral Directors on The Green in Cashel marked its own milestone, celebrating 50 years in business.

James took over the family business from his father Tom in 2005, having trained by his father’s side since he was 18-years-old.

James and his wife, Siobhán, now undertake the ceremonies together. The Devitts have seen profound changes in the roles of religion, faith and ritual in the last 50 years. Tom Devitt started the business in 1972, when Irish society was very different. And stepping into his father’s shoes was a big responsibility, says James. “I was always groomed for it. I went off and qualified as an embalmer in 1989.”

Covid-19 has changed the nature of funerals completely. Large crowds attending to offer sympathies in person have dwindled, while the rip.ie website means that mourners can now offer tributes and condolences online to the family of the deceased.

The pandemic “was very difficult on families”, says James. “In the initial lockdown, everyone was petrified. If you mentioned Covid, it was like the bubonic plague. I think Covid has changed funerals dramatically.

"The crowds attending funerals are way down, and I don’t know if it will ever come back up. Funerals are now smaller as a rule. They are using rip.ie to pass on sympathies. There are pros and cons to that. People have said they’ve left some lovely messages on rip.ie whereas if you go to a funeral, you can only say ‘sorry for your troubles’ and shake a hand.”

Some people preferred the more intimate, private funerals during lockdown. “People have said to me, ‘only the people who matter were there’. Some people love the crowds, some people hate the crowds. It’s personal.”

James served his apprenticeship with O’Connor Brothers in North Gate Bridge in Cork. There followed a written exam and practical experience with the Lear College of Mortuary Sciences in London where James had to embalm in front of an examiner.

Graduating in 1989, he returned to Cashel. Has he seen any very unusual requests or special funerals which stand out? “Nothing really off the wall. Most families keep it traditional. But there are no rules to a funeral. You don’t have to do anything. More and more funerals now aren’t going to churches. Cremation is more popular.”

The biggest changes in 50 years are the introduction of funeral homes, the introduction of embalming, Covid-19 and rip.ie.

“People are not using church services as much. Before, people went to church because they felt they had to. The church element of funerals is going to change drastically in the next 50 years because we’re not going to have the availability of priests.”

James says that religion is personal. A lot of people believe in a God “in their own way, but that doesn’t mean they go to a church. I would never comment on or criticise someone’s beliefs. I have my own beliefs. Everyone is accountable at the end of the day for themselves”.

Undertaking takes a huge emotional toll, especially when it’s a young person, a suicide, or a car crash.
James says he doesn’t take his work home with him. “I try and leave it here. You have to keep a professional distance.

“Now there are funerals that suck you in. There’s nothing you can do about it, especially when it’s a child. It’s extremely difficult.” The impact of a car crash reverberates all around, with the gardaí, ambulance crews and undertakers.

“Over the years, you learn to cope with it.” James has close colleagues he confides in, but hasn’t sought counselling. “With the years of experience I’ve had, I’ve come across most things.”
Does it make him reflect on his own mortality? “Absolutely. Of course it does. Is there a Heaven? Is there a Hell? No one has come back to tell us. We all have our own ideas on that. It won’t always be the other fellow, some day it will be us.”

James says there is no typical day. You can get a call for a funeral at any time, morning, noon, or night.

“I often start work at eight or nine or ten o’clock at night. And you might not have got a call all day. It’s totally unpredictable. There is no normal day,” he added.

James gets the call on his mobile from the family or priest. “It depends on where they passed away. If they passed away in the hospital, I’ll go to the hospital and collect the deceased, and bring them back to the funeral home.”

Some families choose to wake the deceased at home as well as have them repose in the funeral home. “They would take them home for a night, and for the public, they’d take them back to the funeral home. And they have the best of both worlds.”

Covid stopped removals in the evenings. In most cases now, the deceased is taken to Mass or service in the morning and then on for cremation or burial.

The skill of embalming goes back to ancient times, and involves the uses of special fluids. “The difference it makes to the presentation of the deceased is phenomenal,” says James. “When I first started, people didn’t want embalming because they didn’t know what it was. That was the biggest challenge I had.

“But when people saw the results, they came in and said to me ‘you’ll have our loved one looking well, won’t you?’ I’d say, leave that all to me.

“The most important person at the funeral is the deceased, and once they are presented properly - that’s the biggest challenge.”

Every family deals with grief differently, and there is no instruction manual. “Some people are very upset at the time, and for others it hits them six or 12 months down the road.

“Everyone has to find their own way through it.”