This article is from page 4 of the 2011-06-14 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 4 JPG
THE emotion in the voices of two female friends of Eoin Ryan’s spoke for everyone in Ballyea on Friday morning – holding hands they stood together and delivered an achingly poignant rendition of Sarah McLachan’s ‘In the Arms of the Angels’.
Tears welling in their eyes, the song came as 21-year-old Eoin prepared for his final journey, from Ballyea Church to the adjoining cemetery in the church grounds.
Every seat in Ballyea Church was taken nearly an hour before the funeral mass got underway at 11am, while outside large numbers listened to the ceremony through a public address system that had been erected in the church grounds.
“He, like any young man, would be looking forward to and dreaming of a bright future for himself,” said parish priest Fr Harry Brady in his homily. “His family and his friends have many precious memories of him, but yet the pain is there and the emptiness is there.”
Speaking on behalf of the Ryan family, Eoin’s older brother Daniel drew laughter from the congregation when prefacing his comments by say- ing “I will keep it very quick because nothing would annoy Eoin more than me being the centre of attention.
“On behalf of my Dad, Mam, Lisa and I, I wish express our deep gratitude to Eoin’s friends, our friends and our relations who have supported us and brought us through the last few days.
“I would like to thank Eddie and the choir for their beautuful singing. I’d like to thank the Garda Siochána for their professionalism and their empathy over the last few days and I’d like to thank Fr Brady and all the other priests for their compassion and support.
“Most especially, we want to thank our great neighbours for all their unbelievable assistance. Without you, we could not have got through these last few traumatic days. We will be forever grateful for you. Thank you all so much.
“Please remember Eoin as the peaceful, loving, beautiful young man that he was. Even though he’s gone from us now, he will remain a shining light in our hearts forever. We love you Eoin,” he added.