LAST UPDATE | 1 Sep 2023
THE MOTHER OF Luke McSweeney (24) and his younger sister Grace McSweeney (18), who both died in a car crash in Clonmel last Friday, has has urged mourners to make the world a better place in their memory.
The tragic incident saw four lives lost on the way to a Leaving Cert results celebration, including the siblings and Grace’s friends Nicole Murphy and Zoey Coffey.
The bodies of Grace and Luke have been in repose at their family home since yesterday, at Mountain Road, Clonmel.
Their funeral mass is took at St Peter and Paul’s Church on Gladstone Street.
The mass was followed by a burial in St Patrick’s Cemetery.
Clonmel came to a standstill as the two hearses drove side by side ahead of the funeral service.
The hearses stopped outside Saints Peter and Paul’s Church where the two coffins were carried inside, and crowds of mourners filed in the doors after them.
The street outside remained filled with mourners after the pews in the church filled up.
A guard of honour of girls from Presentation College formed outside the church where the joint funeral took place.
President Michael D Higgins and Minister for Education Norma Foley were both in attendance at the funeral.
Speaking at the funeral mass, Fr Billy Meehan said Luke was an “exceptional young person”.
“Luke was a spiritual person and he saw life as a challenge,” Fr Meehan said.
“He passed on little gems of wisdom to all his friends,” he said.
Luke was a keen sportsman, playing hurling with St Mary’s GAA Club in Clonmel, as well as soccer with Old Bridge FC.
Fr Meehan said he would advise his younger brother to go to the gym and eat well.
He also said Luke was a spiritual person who saw life as a challenge but put things in perspective.
Speaking of Grace, Fr Meehan said she was “full of life”.
“Her name was Grace, she was grace by nature, she was grace by disposition.”
She was also sporty like her brother, teaching gymnastics and acting as a timekeeper and scorekeeper at matches.
Grace and Luke are mourned by their mother Brigid, father Paul, brother Mark and David, Luke’s girlfriend Kelly, and their wider family and friends.
“They will be sadly missed and their precious short lives will never be forgotten,” a statement from their death notices read.
The siblings’ mother Brigid addressed the funeral towards the end of the service, telling mourners that she and her husband Paul were honoured to be the parents of Luke and Grace.
She said her gratitude outweighs her sorrow.
“I feel compelled to come before you all here today to let you know the messages you sent from near and far were heard, the compassion shown to us was overwhelming,” she told mourners.
“I find myself not able to find the words because thank you feels inadequate.
“On behalf of Paul, Mark, David and myself, we will be forever in awe of our emergency services, the gardai, fire brigade, ambulance, hospital staff, your heroic effort last Friday night when we lost Luke, Grace, Zoey and Nicole, four extraordinary young people.
“The help and support that we have received from families, friends, neighbours, school, clubs, shops and businesses of our town, the people of Clonmel, our communities and far beyond is truly phenomenal. We are all strong now because of you.
“Paul and myself were honoured to be the parents of Luke and Grace, and blessed to have them for so long.”
She described her daughter as “gentle and very shy”, and her son Luke “strong in body and mind”, and who wanted to make a difference in the world.
“He wanted to make it a better place,” she said.
“Luke and Grace had wonderful friends and I thank them all for making Grace and Luke’s lives so fulfilled and wonderful because they were the happiest they could have ever been.
“Luke strived to be the best version of himself and he encouraged everybody to do the same. Luke’s code, eat well, stay fit and have faith.
“Leave your sorrow behind here today, and make the world a better place.”
Nicole Murphy was buried yesterday in Kilcash in south Tipperary, following a funeral mass.
Members of the McSweeney and Coffey families were present at what was the first funeral following the tragedy.
Hundreds of people gathered outside the church as the hearse carrying the teenager’s white coffin arrived just after 12pm.
Classmates from Loreto Secondary School formed a guard of honour as the casket was brought into the church.
There were tears as some members of the congregation comforted each other with hugs.
Zoey Coffey’s funeral will take place tomorrow.
With reporting by Hayley Halpin and Press Association
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