The funeral of a rising GAA teenage star “who lived his life with an adventurous spirit” and died in a quad bike incident on Easter Sunday has taken place in Portlaoise.
David Brown, 15, died at a wooded area near Ballyshanduff, Ballybrittas, in Laois shortly after 2pm. The incident occurred at about 1.30pm and involved a quad bike with two males on board, gardaí said.
A second teenager was brought to Midlands Regional Hospital, Tullamore, but his injuries are not believed to be life threatening.
At David's funeral on Friday, his coffin was adorned with a photograph of the teenager along with his green and white GAA jersey as it was brought into St Peter and Paul’s Church Portlaoise. On the floor lay numerous white and yellow floral wreaths.
Symbols of his passions in his life were presented at the start of the concelebrated Funeral Mass.
Ray Meredith led a narration of the symbols of the teenager’s life. A hurl and helmet were brought to the altar by his friend Dave Reddin, the last GAA jersey he wore last Saturday when playing for the Laois Celtic Challenge team that defeated Kildare was carried by another close friend Liam Conroy.
His cousin Johnny carried a toy dog which represented his love for animals, particularly dogs. The congregation was told that one of the last phone calls he made was to his mother Carmel to ensure Ruth, the family dog, was fed.
Darren, another friend brought his Memory Book titled, “It’s a Small World After All” while his little sister Sarah finally presented a family photograph.
His emotional Carmel told mourners: “On behalf of James and myself I want to say what a privilege and honour it is to be a parent of three beautiful children. It is a wonderful gift and an honour to be parents to Conor, to David and to Sarah.
“David lived his life with an adventurous spirit and being a parent to David was also an adventure. His kindness, his sense of humour and one of greatest traits was his destiny for life was always there. As David’s mother I always tried to be one step ahead of him and the learned skill of having a teenager and asking him to do the opposite of what I really wanted him to do.
“The great memories we have of David will hopefully carry me through.”
Parish Priest Monsignor John Murphy told hundreds of mourners both inside and outside the Church at midday that: “There is a huge congregation here at St Peter and Paul’s today and indeed the many gathered outside. It speaks volumes about the sad occasion that has gathered us together. It is also a testament to David whose heartbreaking accidental death on Easter Sunday has shocked and saddened a whole community.
“Most of all of course his parents, his brother and sister, his uncle and aunts, his cousins, his school pals and his team mates. It is also a testament to the desire of so many who want to do what they can to support James and Carmel, Conor and Sarah and the extended Brown and Moloney families at this most difficult time.
“Losing a child is a tragedy that no parent should have to experience and losing a brother so young and so sad for Conor and Sarah. A family unit is wrenched asunder, a family unit is brokenhearted and the grief that follows for a family is profound and long lasting. David as we all know was a gifted young man, a gifted sportsman leading to so much speculation amongst his team mates, his mentors, his club, Portlaoise GAA and county officials as to what may be, looking forward to his progression.
“His loss is greatly felt by his team mates and indeed the wider community. His death is a reminder to us all as to how fragile life can be and how important it is to cherish every moment with our loved ones.”
Fr Murphy continued: “It is a special reminder to us all to mind and take care of each other particularly in these days when grief is so raw for so many. David was called from this life on Easter Sunday - a feast that gives us hope. We celebrate the resurrection of Jesus that allows us and enables us to look beyond the tragedy of David’s death at such a young an age.
“It allows us to look to life eternal, that is the hope of Easter, that is the promise to David and indeed to each one of us and as I said the grief that follows of one so young and so tragically is profound. Grief is part and parcel of our DNA. We grieve for one so young and one so good and one so gifted as David.
“But we grieve as people who have a need for hope and in the resurrection of Jesus we place our faith and hope today that David, a full of life, popular young man will now be embraced by God and join members of the Brown and Moloney families who have already gathered in that home in heaven in the many rooms that Jesus spoke about.”
He finished his homily adding: “Even though he was maturing into a fine cut of an athlete, he might not be too pleased as being referred to as a little child but to James and Carmel he will always be their child. Please Lord put your arms around David and embrace him in your eternal love.
“There won’t be a day for the rest of their lives that those who loved David in this life won’t think about him and while these thoughts now are painful we pray and hope that time will help that pain to be relieved by the good memories, that the pain of loss will be lighten for the blessing to have had him in our lives.
"The blessing it was to be his parents, the blessing it was to be his brother, to be his uncle or aunt, his cousin, his friend, his team mate. It was a blessing to have one so gifted amongst us enriching the life of not only his immediate family but indeed not only of Portlaoise GAA but the whole community and county. We thank God for all that David was. We are shocked and stunned and we can’t add it up that one so young is called to eternal life but we do thank God for all that he was."
The streets and roads from David’s home were lined with young and old to mark his memory and to offer sympathies to his family as he is now “in the great pitch in heaven”.
His coffin was carried from the Church by six pallbearers to the strains of Forever Young.
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