A howling gale whipping off the Atlantic buffeted the Church of the Holy Family in Killeen, near Louisburgh in Co Mayo, for the funeral of 26-year-old Declan Davitt, the second young man to die in the Christmas morning drowning tragedy.
Mourners, of whom there were as many as attended Thursday’s funeral of his best friend, Martin Needham, had to enter by the rear door to prevent the wind cutting through the front of building. A night of heavy rain and a dawn drenched in sleet reminded all who came of the wild forces of nature that often attend west Mayo.
Declan’s coffin was guided up the aisle, led by his sister Mary and brother-in-law Chris, followed by his father, Walter, steadying himself with a walking stick, and his mother, Mary-B, her dignity intact but inconsolable in her grief.
Father Mattie Long told the congregation that for many years, Walter was one of the parishioners who would help make the Christmas crib in front of the altar – a reminder, said the priest, that God became one of us, was born in a stable and that death and suffering would be overcome.
What happened on Christmas morning, when Martin and Declan’s 4x4 jeep was swept down the Carrowniskey River, drowning them and carrying their bodies into Roonah Lake, with only one passenger, 19-year-old Tom McGrail, escaping to safety, turned into a long dark day but God’s love was also on display, said Fr Mattie.
“It was visible in a cattle shed in Carrowniskey, where shelter was sought [BY RESCUERS]from the heavy showers sweeping in from the Atlantic,” he said.
“In the midst of the harsh reality of death and loss, the Davitt family have requested that it again be acknowledged today all that was done by so many last Monday.
“The people of Carrowniskey and Roonith who immediately responded in the dark in very poor weather conditions and went to see what help they could render.
“All those who on Christmas morning abandoned all their own plans and without hesitation opened their homes to facilitate the Davitt and Needham families, to provide food and shelter for all involved in the emergency operation – our gardaí and Coast Guard, Mayo fire and rescue service, our own local Order of Malta ambulance volunteers, and the many, many other people who volunteered and assisted in whatever way they could on that long, dark day.”
Symbols of Declan’s life were similar to those of Martin’s brought to the church the day before – a tractor representing his love of farming and of Macra na Feirme; shears for his love of sheep farming, darts and a mobile phone representing socialising and communicating with family and friends; and a symbol of New Zealand, “a country he came to love and all the friends he made there”, said Fr Mattie.
The funeral Mass was live-streamed to New Zealand via YouTube so friends from his four years living there could witness events in Killeen. Some had managed to come to Ireland for the funeral.
During his time there, Declan “blossomed and developed as a confident young man”, said Fr Mattie and when he came home some years ago, he kept his plans secret from his parents in Curradavitt, on the side of the mountain above Killeen.
His surprise return when it happened prompted “sweet tears of joy” in his family.
The choir sang Silent Night, God is by my Side, Beyond the Rainbow's End and Going Home.
An elderly man read the reflection ‘Don’t grieve for me, for now I’m free’.
A young man, speaking on behalf of the family and fighting to control his emotions, said what had happened was incomprehensible. Declan was an “honest, caring, happy fellow with a wonderful personality” and “the guy who was always first there to help anyone in need”.
He relayed condolences from “John, Sally, Brook and Kerryanne” and all Declan’s other friends in New Zealand, who said their visitor from Mayo became “a special friend whom they would remember forever”.
Declan’s other sister Patricia, his brother Christopher and his parents escorted the remains from the church. In the cemetery across the road, he was laid to rest beside another sister, Kathleen, who died tragically in December 2010, aged 26.
Facing into the wind and the foaming sea, Walter, Mary-B and the family accepted condolences from the long line of friends and neighbours.
In the sunshine and through a biting gale, several of Declan’s friends – fellow farmers, school mates and cousins – helped gravediggers attack the large mound of sticky clay and stones, pitching shovelfuls onto his coffin after family members has tossed in long-stemmed red and ivory roses.
