Page 158 - May 2018 - December 2018 Issue

Closing the
Black filling the room creating a
melancholic atmosphere, the immediate
family huddled with eyes swollen from
crying all night, heads kept bowed as if
looking for a needle dropped on the floor.
The light from the candle reflecting the
sadness in the eyes of the people
mourning. They welcome friends and
acquaintances with tight-lipped smiles
and speaking in hushed tone. Offering hot
soup to fill the stomach as they share
some happy memories and humble stories
of their dearly departed.
The sad news already reaching a relative
working abroad. Unfortunately, due to
lacking in finance, he cannot fly home to
the Philippines to be with his loved ones in
times of grief. Instead, he opens his
computer and logs in to the website of a
funeral service. After a few clicks, the
footage of the wake appears on his screen.
And suddenly, distance is immaterial.
Thanks to technology, it changed our
course of space and time. Distance is no
longer a factor in communication and so
are time zones. Making calls to people
anywhere even costs nothing now. And so,
with E-Burol, Filipinos in distant places can
now attend – at least virtually – the wake of
someone close to their heart.
Who says that only Big Brother’s House
has a 24-hour live video streaming? Well,
that was the first in the Philippine
entertainment industry. In the Philippine
funeral industry, St. Peter a pre-need
157 | TECHNOLOGY
Distance through
E-Burol
By Mary Ann Caritativo,
Technology Management
Death Care and Memorial Service Company
that has been providing professional and
traditional memorial services to the Filipino
public also has it known as E-Burol the first
online 24-hour real time wake viewing in
the Philippines. Yes, you read it right it’s free
– a complimentary service to their valued
client.
The name came from ‘e’ for electronic and
‘burol’ a Filipino word for wake. Launched in
2007, the idea is to connect families or
relatives living and working abroad or in far
reaches of the country to be virtually part of
the wake of their departed loved ones.
Cameras are set-up in strategic areas inside
the St. Peter chapels and are equipped with
fast internet to enable live-streaming. And
since privacy is an utmost priority no one
can view the service without the consent of
the immediate family. They can only view
the wake once they log on to St. Peter’s web
site and enter the correct username and
password provided to the immediate family
of the deceased. And did I mention that
mourners present in the wake can also gain
wireless internet access in the funeral home,
Isn’t it cool?
Funeral companies have used technology to
make this possible, proving that innovations
do not only change the way people live but
also the way they cope with death. For
some, this may take away the solemnity of
the occasion but for those without the
means to personally attend a wake, this is
their way of joining in the mourning.