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Updated 12.30pm
THE FUNERAL MASS for Larry and Martina Hayes has taken place this morning in Athlone, with parish priest Fr Liam Devine describing the popular couple’s deaths as “devastating” and something that “no human experience of grief and loss could prepare a family for”.
The mass for Larry (56) and Martina (55) was held at 11 am at the church of St Peter and Paul in the town.
The couple had been taking a final walk along the beach at the Sousse resort before flying home when killer Seifeddine Rezgui began his attack last Friday. They had been married for 32 years.
“For some time now the violence of misguided ISIS terrorist fanatics have invaded our living rooms in a sanitised, sterilised way,” said Fr Devine in his homily.
We never thought it would trouble us here in Ireland, so far away.
Today it invades our town in two coffins.
The violence is now at our own door.
Fr Devine described Larry and Martina as “soulmates” who went everywhere together.
“They shared a common interest in gardening. Martina’s home was her castle,” he said.
She was a brilliant housekeeper. You would be hard pressed to find a speck of dust in the house. Efforts to find fingerprints in the house proved futile, such was the pristine state of everything.
The mass heard how both Larry and Martina were from well-known Athlone families.
“Larry, or Lonnie as he was known, was the youngest of five, two girls and three boys. They were from Altown here in Athlone. Martina Kelly, a native of Kiltoom in South Roscommon, was the youngest of eleven, eight girls and three boys,” said Fr Devine.
They were private and highly respected people.
Fr Devine saved some measure of condemnation in his speech for killer Rezgui, declaring “the massacre of innocents is always an abominable crime”.
It is impossible to get inside the mind of someone who would carry out such an abominable act of violence. We cannot judge people like that by our values and standards.
In an eerie sense Athlone is twinned with Sousse and Ireland is twinned with Tunisia through the sudden and violent deaths of Martina and Larry.
The couple are to be buried in nearby Coosan cemetery after the service.
The two, along with Meath woman Lorna Carty, were among 38 dead as a result of the last Friday’s atrocity.
Eight people are currently being held in Tunisia in connection with the attack.
The couple are survived by daughter Sinéad, together with Larry’s brothers Seamus and Michael and sisters Ann and Della, and Martina’s brothers John Joe, Tommy and Billy, her sisters Evelyn, Ita, Della, Patricia, Pauline, Maureen and Veronica, uncles Andy and Steve, and many relatives and friends.
Lorna Carty will be laid to rest tomorrow following a mass at 12 noon at the Church of the Assumption, Robinstown, Co Meath.
Originally published 07.23am
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The photo of the couple radiates happiness. My heart goes out too their daughter, not just today but for the rest of her life. Loosing loved ones is tough but when it’s murder it adds a whole different element of grief. Rest In Peace, I hope you lived a good happy life while you were here.
I note no flags at half mast for these victims?
Bus Eireann (my Dad works for them) are placing all the flags at their stations at half-mast. But not sure about anywhere else?
Agree Paddy whats the difference between these victims and the Berkeley victims?, all tragic.
I notice good old Boko Haram have given us another fine exhibition of the workings of the religion of peace, I’m sure the Journal will get around to reporting it at some stage?.
agreed William and paddy what’s the difference ? no flags at half mast , not even in the front headlines , not many comments on here about it compared to the Berkeley victims , both very tragic there should be no difference between the two . very sad day for the daughter today to have to bury her parents .
Ssshhh! Let’s not remind Irish people that Islamic terrorists don’t give a sh!t about ‘neutrality’ we wouldn’t want to upset the lads at Clonskeagh.
Clonskeagh issued a condemnation in the Mirror during the week, to be fair. And the Islamic Centre in Blanchardstown issued a categorical condemnation, also. This is good to see, as I believe both centres have their differences.
It is right that Irish Muslims distance themselves from Islamic terrorist attacks.
@William – I doubt they will report on it at all. I didn’t notice anything about the killings on the Sinai Peninsula either.
Or even recent reports about the WFP being forced to cutting food aid and massive child labour rates within the refugee community in host nations that neighbour conflict.
Huge difference William.
The kids in the US were victims of a horrible accident.
The people killed in Tunisia were victims a crazy idiot killing in the name of a fairy tale story called religion.
Huge difference my friend.
Dead right Tony, I was of course been a little sarcastic in my tone ref Journal non reporting, the religion of peace keeps on contradicting itself with pools and pools of blood, in Bokp Harams case even killing their own?.
A sick sick religion, its the ambiguity that makes it so dangerous, one passage says love thy neighbour another would probably tell you to hack the head off an unbeliever, both the radical and the moderate are correct because each point at passages to justify their actions or non actions?>
How is the death of one so much different than the death of another?, accidents happen everywhere whereis?
Most accidents in hindsight could’ve been avoided but the death of little boy on a farm or a pedestrian walking home at night, they too had grieving families the same as the tragic victims of Berkeley.
@William Boyd. You are quite right and after reading Koran:2:106, the verse of Abrogation,-
—-”2:106 None of Our revelations do We abrogate or cause to be forgotten, but We substitute something better or similar: Knowest thou not that Allah Hath power over all things?”
- it becomes perfectly clear that the later violent verses of Medina abrogate or take precedence over the earlier somewhat benign verses of Mecca.
Muslims know this and so tend to step aside when the hard-liners take up arms in Allah’s Cause.
@Suzie Sunshine.. There is a huge difference. The Berkeley affair was a tragic civil accident.
The executions in Tunisia were a direct attack by the agents of dangerous ideology at war with all non-Muslims. The victims,though unaware of it,were our front line personnel. As such the flags ought to have been at half-mast.
It’s high time we rescinded the status of religion that this ideology deliberately and deceitfully hides under.
Patrick – I never see you quoting chapter and verse on stories that mention the Israeli land grab?
@whereisspace et al. A crazy, maybe, but the Muslim Brotherhood who controlled and triggered off the madness were and are a cold-blooded gang of murderers who’ll stop at nothing to gain power.
The objective of the executions was to ruin the Tunisian economy and thus the ruling govt.party who won power from the Muslim Brotherhood party in the last elections on an economic platform. By this action the Muslim Brotherhood hope to cause chaos and retake power.
The Muslim Brotherhood still has the support of 27% of the electorate. Their ideological inspiration comes from the Salafist (Kill-Them-Wherever-You-Find-Them) fundamentalists who have a big following in Sousa where the executions took place.
@Tony Canning. Do you mean the Israeli land grab by Mohammedans?
Here’s the admission of such by Turkish journalist Uzay Bulet from Ankara.
—–”Ever since the seventh century, Muslim armies have invaded and captured Jewish(Israeli), Christian, Hindu, Buddhist and Zoroastrian lands; for more than 1400 years since, they have continued their jihad, or Islamic raids, against other religions.”—-
take all that away and what you have is Irish citizens who went away to have some fun and enjoy themselves and none of them came back home alive , looking at it that way and there’s not much difference .
@whereisspace – He did not kill them in the name of religion – it was done in the name of Islam, as prescribed in the Koran, to kill unbelievers (non Muslims).
Dude. Islam is a religion is it not?
I see they their funeral didn’t command headline news last night unlike the Berkeley deaths. Must be a South Dublin thing I suppose.
Indeed, I’m surprised by the little reaction by the media to this and the major event it represents – a first direct attack from ISIS on Irish and British.
No flags at half mast nor for the father, son and girlfriend who drowned in Cork.. Not even a follow up on that story.
If it’s not a Dublin story…
I agree with no headline news no flags at half mast. I honestly can’t imagine what the families of those murdered people are going through. To go on holiday and come back in a coffin.my sincerest sympathy to the family friends and colleagues of the deceased.May they rest in peace.
Thank you, journal for deleting my comment about the Tunisian murders: I sais that 38 people were killed for getting a suntan or having a drink by the pool – what’s wrong with that?
At least you are calling it an atrocity, which is the correct term for it.
My sincere sympathies to the victims.
I’m not here to defend this site Yuba, but you appeared to have commented on a different article
http://www.thejournal.ie/tunisia-attack-2-2194142-Jul2015/
Rest in peace – tragic story
It’s so sad and it seems there’s no place safe now from these maniacs who don’t even value their own lives.
god be with their family, RIP.
Unfortunately we can expect more of this as no one cares enough about ISIS to do anything about them. And Ireland will hide behind it’s Neutrality flag as usual instead of joining international forces in fighting these terrorists. The whole world has to fight them. No one can go after them alone.
ireland is not neutral. I’m ashamed though that there has been no moments silence not no flags put at half mast to signify the first Irish deaths at the hands of ISIS.
I don’t believe this was the first Irish death fighting ISIS. I believe a few went out to Syria to fight against them and fell. Not sure if they were Irish citizens or just residents.
RIP such a dreadful thing for their family and friends and loved new in general.
Great headline though Journal.ie and a debate in itself!
Is it just me or do the west Dublin Muslims seem a lot more ‘normal’ than the originals in clonskeagh? I have my view and the latter’s silence speaks volumes, they’ll never integrate or want to are my thoughts. Whereas an Iman in Blanch reaches for the olive branch albeit controversial at times but you can’t negotiate with silent enemies or no supporters.
Good night from fear of Islam Melbourne. “D16 away from home but adapt or piss off remains my view”
My condolences to the family and friends of this couple. It needs to be pointed out that the entire Med coastal regions are now a target for ISIS gunmen. The Royal Navy recently issued a report that they have intelligence that Islamic terrorists are planning to use Libya as a base and using Ribs cross the Med and fire at beaches where ‘infidels’ are relaxing, from the sea. Then return to Libya.
What does this terrorist attack mean for our neutrality? For those who still believe that this exists in the modern world?
Our Neutrality ?
So with the US using Shannon for rendition and a lot of US and British multi-nationals headquartered here, do you think muslim terrorists care that the Paddys are ‘grand fellas’ ??
Were those poor people on the beach in Tunisia not neutral ??
Unfortunately the liberals and EU pressure means it will take an incident even closer to home before we take the required action to restrict the movement and the actions of muslim terrorists that are possibly living closer to you than you want to believe.
@larry prophetic words I fear, let’s hope you’re wrong, but it will take a serious jolt to wake up our liberal overlords, Isis needs to be destroyed now before they grow too big, the nazis got a head start of just 6 years and it took the mite of the, Soviet Union, the British empire, and the USA to take them down in the end
agree the time for action is now. they are dangerous need to be wiped off the earth and its not about being liberal/conservative, this is plainly fact. Act soon by eliminating I.S. and lives will be saved I’m sure of it
U
While I take Dizzy’s point about it being perhaps more appropriate to leave the families of the victims in peace, the low-key coverage (at least in contrast to Berkley) of the killings in the Irish media is strange. Does anybody else sense that there is a distinct uneasiness with facing up to the fact that we can and will be victims along with the Brits, Spanish or any other Europeans that happen to be in the “wrong” place? That in fact our military neutrality and the frequent pro-Palestinian support shown by the people of Ireland are no kind of shield at all?Worse yet, ,that the image of the charmin’ feckless Paddy has no currency whatsoever beyond our immediate cultural peers?
The political struggles in the ME are (at this stage anyway) seen as an opportunity by extreme Islamists to mount a full-scale reverse Crusade and the targets are Christians, Atheists, Shia Muslims etc wherever they may be. Forget dialogue , this is about achieving total dominance over the infidel – not about righting past wrongs.
Anjem Choudary on the radio a few days ago suggested that the use of Shannon as a transit for extraordinary rendition might be sufficient reason for some to regard us as legitimate targets. The gunmen didn’t shoot Irish tourists “by accident”. Make no mistake, this country HAS BEEN attacked. Like it or not, we are in it.
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