Elisha Gault was laid to rest today, following a funeral service that highlighted the importance of connecting with people face-to-face, rather than via the virtual world.
The 14-year-old had been reported missing on St. Patrick's Day, and she was found in the River Suir this last Sunday.
Today, mourners gathered to honour Elisha's life. Her funeral cortege halted at Dillon Bridge during its route from her home in Carrick-on-Suir on the way to the Church of the Assumption in Piltown, Co Kilkenny.
Hundreds of white roses and carnations were tossed into River Suir as a tribute to Elisha, with Carrick-on-Suir River Rescue and Civil Defence volunteers forming a special guard of honour on the bridge.
Elisha's mother, Gráinne, had specially requested that the touching floral ceremony take place, the Irish Independent reports. Candles in glass holders topped the bridge's parapets to acknowledge the work of Pieta House.
Gráinne and Elisha's father, Cameron, helped carry their daughter's coffin to the into the Church of the Assumption, where the funeral took place, and later across the road to Piltown cemetery. Behind the coffin was a floral bouquet called 'Egg', after Elisha's affectionate nickname.
Her sisters Chloe, Bhrianna, and Saoirse and her parents were joined by hundreds of mourners at the funeral.
At the service, Fr Paschal Moore delivered an emotional plea for children to leave social media behind and pay attention to their mental health instead.
"Today, boys and girls, I would encourage you to form a support network around yourselves," Fr Moore entreated the young people gathered at the church.
"Facebook is wonderful at times - and people boast about how many friends they have on Facebook.
"But your friends on Facebook are artificial friends - what you need are real people around you. Real, genuine, loving and caring people and I would encourage every single one of you to find a real good support network for yourselves," he said.
Fr Moore added, "Your mind does matter - your mind is so important."
He also spoke of her 'turmoil', which 'we will never appreciate or understand'.
"Elisha's outward appearance and behaviour were masked by a cloud of hopelessness within," Fr Moore noted.
"She felt trapped - she was a prisoner of her feelings and her thoughts which weighed heavily on her."
He emphasised that people need to reach out to one another in times of stress and anxiety:
"We all need support - from the oldest to the youngest of us. We need people who will listen, people who will talk to us and people who will be a shoulder to lean on."
Elisha's mum spoke, saying that she felt that the funeral today needed to be a celebration of her daughter's life.
"My gorgeous, beautiful Elisha had a genuine soul but she was a troubled girl for reasons I won't discuss at this moment in time," Gráinne shared.
"She had a very loving family, friends and Edge Youth Club who [had] done their utmost to heal and support her but unfortunately we were not successful.
"I have a hole in my heart that will never be filled - she was her own person and I just wish we had the answer that could have gave her inner strength."
Gráinne continued, "We will carry our baby girl - I carried her into the world and I will carry her out again."
"We want you all to celebrate her laugh - we want laughter and music because she so loved her tunes.
"She always wanted to make everyone happy with her messing so I want to end the day in that spirit - I want the presence of Elisha, our wee Egg, to be felt in the most positive way possible."
Elisha's mum also thanked the volunteers who searched tirelessly to find her daughter.
A celebration of the 14-year-old's life was held at the Swan Club in Carrick-on-Suir after the burial.
Our deepest and most heartfelt sympathies go to Elisha's family, her mum and dad and sisters, wider family and friends during the most tragic of times.
