COVID-19 has killed nearly 20,000 Illinoisans. And for the family left behind, rituals of mourning have been curtailed or prevented. We talk about saying goodbye in a pandemic with the Rev. Marshall Hatch, pastor of the New Mount Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church in Chicago's West Garfield neighborhood; he and his community have been hard-hit by COVID. We also spoke with SIU-Edwardsville Prof. Jocelyn DeGroot, who studies death and grieving, and is the author of The New York Times op-ed, "What Should You Say When Someone is Grieving?" And Kevin Rafferty, president of Rafferty Funeral Home in Moline.

The impressive facade of the main church at Saint Meinrad Archabbey looks like it was taken straight out of Europe. Twin steeples topped by golden crosses loom over the rural Indiana landscape. During the holiday season, it's a place of healing, as some St. Meinrad monks help people cope with their grief.