A community’s support is so good to see

AS Father Stephen Walsh said at the funeral Mass of Christopher ‘ Sunny’ Harte and his son, Sean, there are no words of comfort that can be said to ease the pain of what the Harte family is going through at present.

The devoted father and son were snatched away in one night, as Father Walsh said at the joint funeral Mass, in the most tragic of circumstances.

It was an unbelievable tragedy and one that will never be forgotten by the people of Sligo and in particular by the close knit community of St Brigid’s Place and the surrounding area.

And people from the community and the town turned up in their hundreds to pay their respects at the removal and later at the funeral Mass of Sunny and Sean last Wednesday morning.

There were poignant scenes as the life of both men were recalled. How they loved Celtic and Ireland, their nights out and their fashion, how they were more like brothers than father and son.

Their wit and humour came through even to those who may have not known them too well.

The Harte family is very well known and regarded in the town. Like the Kennedys, Gormans, O’Rourkes, Grays and McGarrys to name just a few, the Hartes were synonymous with the St Brigid’s, St Joseph’s, MCR area.

The sons of these families all had one thing in common, their love of football and in particular street football.

The area produced many a good footballer. It was a link which was never broken as the generations got older.

It was no surprise that Sunny and Sean were big Celtic and Ireland fans. Anyone growing up in the town gets bitten by the soccer bug.

I recall Sean playing for MCR in my refereeing days. Communities like in the greater MCR area and Forthill were a hotbed of football when I was growing up.

It was difficult not to grow up in the area without kicking a ball each evening, particularly on the long summer evenings.

The streets and the Fairgreen held matches and mini tournaments that went long into the night.

There were no Xboxes or Playstations then, it was grab a ball and go outside and you’d always be guaranteed there’d be enough out to have a kickabout.

And it was a close knit community always doing its best to comfort those who needed help.

That was so evident in Sligo Cathedral last Wednesday morning when not only the community of St Brigid’s and St Joseph’s turned up to offer comfort by their presence but so did the town in solidarity.

That’s what makes Sligo such a special place to live. There’s a real sense of belonging and desire to help those in times of trouble.

I hope the Harte family can take some comfort from the fact so many people were present to show them they cared and would help them through this.