Friends remember sisters as full of joy

Funeral overflowing for three girls killed in horrific farm accident

TRED DEER, Alta. hey were so very young — three girls who exuded optimism, joy and an infectious energy that comes so naturally to the young.

On the sunny afternoon their community said goodbye to Catriona, Jana and Dara Bott, the nearly 2,000 mourners who gathered at Red Deer’s Crossroads Church found a way — despite the horrifying manner of their deaths — to honour their lives in a fashion befitting them.

The gathering on Friday was a life celebration that reflected the youth of the Bott sisters, whose deaths last week made headlines around the world when all three perished after becoming buried in a transport truck filled with canola seeds. Catriona — known to all as Catie — and Jana died on the scene, while Dara died the next morning in an Edmonton hospital.

Upon entering the church, just off the main highway about halfway between Calgary and Edmonton, visitors stopped to sign condolence books filled with photographs of smiling babies, busy toddlers and poised young girls on their way to becoming women. Nearby, a table was filled with cowboy boots, fishing rods, school textbooks and knitting projects, a testament to their individual personalities and passions.

An hour before the start of the service, the main chapel with a capacity of 1,500 was already filled, requiring hundreds more to watch from the church’s overflow chapels and waiting areas. A Christian pop/rock band playing uplifting songs bridged the long wait, their hopeful words a reflection of the evangelical beliefs of both the Botts and the church.

After an a cappella performance by members of the Leedale Colony choir, Jessica Crane, a young cousin of the girls, stood to perform. She chose a song she had composed with Catie, at 13 the eldest of the sisters, only a few months earlier. “I loved Catie’s heart,” said the teenager, her voice breaking. Quickly regaining her composure, she then strummed her guitar and sang the tune she and her cousin had entitled “Humble.”

Five female cousins of the Bott sisters, all wearing crocheted head bands in their honour — Stephanie and Jessica Crane, Amanda Bjorge, Crystal Erickson and Brenda Church — offered up delightful stories of each of the girls.

Catie was remembered as a vibrant teen who loved her horses, such books as How to Train Your Dragon and performing — in her most recent show she cajoled her older cousins to help her re-enact the Muppets’ famed “Mahna Mahna” song.

Jana, born just before midnight on July 14, 2004, a halfhour before her twin, Dara, was described as a creative soul who liked to paint sunsets and treasured her piano lessons. This past summer, she created everything from invitations and bouquets to the cake for two family weddings.

Dara, born just after midnight on July 15, 2004, was the tomboy of the family who refused to wear the colour pink.

She was the one with a mischievous streak, a girl who loved the Edmonton Oilers, collecting plush cat toys as well as tending to a coterie of live animals that included cats, bunnies and hamsters.

“This is a parent’s worst nightmare,” said Pastor Brian Allan of Withrow Gospel Mission.

“There is an element in our grief others don’t understand,” he said in his unshakable belief that the girls have gone to be with God. “I’m looking forward to seeing those girls again,” he said.

At the service’s conclusion, a video and photo montage was played, showing the girls catching fish, jumping off a diving board and playing on the farm.

Their voices, happy and hopeful, rang out in the church, a final and heartbreaking reminder of just how very young they were.