A PRIEST TODAY sounded a warning over the accidental death of Clare teen, Conor Wilmot where he said that Conor “found something on the internet that went wrong”.
At the funeral mass of the 13-year-old 1st year student, parish priest of Sixmilebridge, Fr Harry Bohan told mourners that it was Conor’s Dad, Greg who found Conor’s body last Thursday night.
Fr Bohan said: “Greg has no doubt that Conor died as a result of a horrible misadventure. Conor found something on the internet that went wrong.”
Fr Bohan told mourners: “That must come as a warning to all of us to be careful as to how we manage exploring worlds we have limited control over.”
At the Church packed full of Conor’s 1st year classmates from St Patrick’s Comprehensive Secondary School in Shannon along with his rugby team mates from St Senan’s, Fr Bohan said that Conor’s family would describe him as “a beautiful soul and to know and love him was a great privilege and they had that privilege for a certain length of time”.
Fr Bohan said that the local community “is in shock” over the loss of Conor “and struggling to understand this tragic loss of a bright and beloved young life”.
Fr Bohan said:
No one knew Conor better than his own family and they would describe Conor, as other people would, as a bright, intelligent, talented human being.
At the end of the mass, Greg Wilmot received a sustained standing ovation after singing and playing his guitar a song entitled Fly On that he penned in tribute to Conor since last Thursday’s tragedy.
The two shared a love of music and had booked tickets to attend a music festival together in Paris next month.
The song included the words ‘We will find a view where everything is one’.
Rugby jersey
Fr Bohan said that Conor was well liked and had many friends and said that there were a dozen of Conor’s friends queuing up and ready to pay tribute to their friend in the church and they made their tributes later at the graveside after the funeral mass.
Earlier, a number of symbols of Conor’s life were offered up including the St Patrick’s Comp school rugby jersey, a woodwork creation Conor had completed at school of the family crest, a Dr Who book and a figure of wresting hero, CM Punk.
In the church, Conor’s white coffin had a St Senan’s jersey draped on top along with a rugby ball.
Fr Bohan said: “In our shock and sadness, we are a community of people in need of much compassion, support and understanding for the journey ahead.
Fr Bohan said that Conor loved science and was an explorer. He recalled that when Conor was born, the nurse told his parents that she believed Conor “to be an old soul”.
The priest told the mourners that for Conor’s family and friends, his “loss leaves a void in their lives that can’t be filled and it is only lessened with time and memories even at that. We as a community want to support the family in any way we can.”
Fr Bohan said:
We say to his family who now endure the incomprehensible loss of a son and brother, nephew and friends, our hearts are with you in compassion and unwavering support, not just today, but in the days and weeks ahead.
He added: “At this time it is easy to get lost in the ‘what onlys’ and ‘what ifs’. While the search for answers is an understandable part of such a tragic loss, it is necessary, I think, to put down our questions and meet one another in the presence of our grief.”
“This a time for genuine companionship and genuine support – not today, not when everyone is at it, but when there are fewer and fewer are around – a grief that will be unfolding in all its stages in the coming months and years.
He said: “A tragedy of a young life lost can provoke strong emotions. We can feel overwhelmed and confused by intensity of feelings we are now experiencing and I know many of you are feeling that. Grieving can be a difficult and potentially isolating experience particularly as life goes on. We don’t put a timeline on grief.”
Conor is survived by his parents, Greg and Irina, sister, Melanie and brother, Ross. Conor was later laid to rest at Ballysheen cemetery.
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