Holli Susi’s 86-year-old mother died of COVID-19 complications last Sunday and the Rhode Island woman was appalled when she learned only five people could attend an outdoor burial. She wrote to her state governor, Gov. Gina Raimondo, saying that it was not right that her mom’s seven grandchildren and great-grandchildren could not say their farewells.

“People can shop at Target, get their hair cut at a salon, eat indoors at restaurants but we cannot have a socially distanced burial outdoors for my mother?” she wrote, according to USA Today. “It’s not just not fair. It disrespects my mother who has already suffered so much and inflicts yet another pain on her family.”

Susi’s father, who is 89, also contracted COVID-19, and while he survived the ensuing pneumonia, he sas been placed in a locked dementia ward at a rehab facility where he developed hospital delirium. She told USA Today that she’s lost both her parents in different ways.

The Rhode Island Department of Health responded to her query saying the outdoor burials are not structured, so there is no way of ensuring 6-foot distancing rules.

“For this reason, during this period when we are seeing such high rates of transmission, tighter restrictions have been put in place for graveside burials and gatherings,” said DOH spokesperson Joseph Wendelken.

Susi is still fighting for her cause, saying that her mother was a “spitfire,” and would have done the same thing.

“This isn’t how we should be treating grieving families,” she said. “The funeral and wake are for the living. We’re robbing people of the opportunity to celebrate a life, the opportunity to comfort one another.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention acknowledges that “grieving the loss of a loved one during the fear and anxiety about the COVID-19 pandemic can be overwhelming. It may be difficult for people to make decisions about how to safely grieve and honor their loved one.” The CDC offers these funeral guidelines for individuals and families.