Mellett Mick Funeral

Photo by Brendan Moran/SportsfileClonkill praise 'lovely touch' as tragic Annabel remembered on emotional night in Parnell Park Independent.ieBALLYBODEN St. Enda’s advanced to the Leinster club SHC semi-finals tonight in Parnell Park with an extra-time victory in their delayed quarter-final with Clonkill in a match played under the pall of desperate tragedy.https://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-games/hurling/clonkill-praise-lovely-touch-as-tragic-annabel-remembered-on-emotional-night-in-parnell-park-37500237.htmlhttps://www.independent.ie/incoming/article37500217.ece/6c28d/AUTOCROP/h342/1602316.jpgEmailBALLYBODEN St. Enda’s advanced to the Leinster club SHC semi-finals tonight in Parnell Park with an extra-time victory in their delayed quarter-final with Clonkill in a match played under the pall of desperate tragedy.Players from both teams stood for an emotional minute's silence before throw-in in memory of Annabel Loughlin (3), who tragically passed away last weekend.Annabel was the daughter of Clonkill stalwart and former Westmeath hurler Enda Loughlin, with the Leinster club hurling quarter-final postponed from Sunday until Tuesday evening after the news broke.To their eternal credit, Clonkill mustered a gutsy performance to push the favourites to extra time.6 November 2018; Members of the Clonkill team stand for a minute's silence in memory of the late Annabel Loughlin prior to the AIB Leinster GAA Hurling Senior Club Championship quarter-final match between Ballyboden St Endas and Clonkill at Parnell Park, in Dublin. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile6 November 2018; Member of the Clonkill team stand for a minute's silence in memory of the late Annabel Loughlin prior to t...

Ann’s Catholic parish came together Thursday to console and hug each other, and pray, as acrid smoke poured from the ruins of their church, leveled by an arsonist who struck in the middle of the night.With tears in his eyes, the Rev. Carlos Perez said he hopes his parish, with 153 active families, will be able to rebuild, but it will be a big challenge. It’s a generous community but also poor, Perez said.“Everyone pray for me and the community,” the priest said. “We will put everything in God’s hands. He takes care of us.”David Wenk, a member of the parish, said, “It’s just a building, but it’s a sacred place. A lot of memories in there: kids being confirmed, a lot of weddings, a lot of funerals, first communions. It hurts to see it go.”The parish planned a special Mass for Thursday evening at the United Methodist Church down the street.Bonners Ferry police had not named a suspect by Thursday evening, but they did identify a person of interest – a man arrested on unrelated charges Thursday morning. Police Chief Vic Watson declined to detail what led to the person’s arrest.Investigators believe the arson may be related to vandalism at St. Ann’s and at least one other Bonners Ferry church earlier this year, Watson said.Thursday’s fire was set in three places in the church’s basement, which also had been vandalized in a fashion similar to vandalism there in February, he said.Watson estimated the loss at over $1 million.“This is a terrible crime,” he said. “A church really grounds people to their community, it grounds people to their religion. We hope they keep their faith strong.”Choir practice and a religious education class with about 30 students had been held in the church basement Wednesday night.Just after 1 a.m. Thursday, Perez and several neighbors heard a blast, then saw flames and smoke. The church, at 6712 El Paso St., was engulfed in flames by the time firefighters arrived minutes later.Crews fought the blaze into the afternoon and tore down the south wall and roof of the church to reach hot spots. The building collapsed about 12...

THE FAMILIES OF murdered student Jastine Valdez and her killer Mark Hennessy have met to exchange sympathies.24-year-old Jastine was killed on Saturday 19 May after being abducted by Hennessy, a married father-of-two, in Enniskerry, Co Wicklow.Hennessy murdered Valdez 45 minutes later and left her body at Puck’s Castle in Rathmichael, Co Dublin.He was killed himself by a Garda bullet when apprehended in his black Nissan Qashqai in Cherrywood, south Dublin, the following day.A Garda release this evening has acknowledged that both grieving families have met.“In the midst of our grief both the Valdez and Hennessy families met on Friday morning where we exchanged sympathies with each other on the tragic circumstances that resulted in the loss of our respective love ones,” the families said in a statement released by gardaí this evening.Both families request privacy at this very difficult time.Mark Hennessy was cremated in a private funeral service yesterday in Harold’s Cross in Dublin.The Irish Times reported that Hennessy’s father Mick told the service that the family is living a “nightmare”.“Hennessy’s father, Mick, told the funeral service the family was living a “nightmare”.“I fix things. That’s my job. I go to work and I fix things,” he told the service.“But for the past week I have been waking up in the morning to see my darling sweetheart wife broken. She’s broken. And I can’t fix her,” he said.I look at my sons and daughters… and they’re broken. I can’t fix them. I look at Mark’s uncles, aunties, cousins, nephews, nieces and his beautiful, beautiful daughters. They’re all broken and I can’t fix them.