Tears for Keane and a tribute from her idols One Direction
SHE was looking forward to seeing her favourite boy band in concert before she was tragically killed. So it may come as some comfort to the grieving family and friends of 12year- old Keane Wallis-Bennett that global superstars One Direction remembered her on the day of her funeral.
The band sent flowers and a heartfelt tribute to console them yesterday as the schoolgirl, who was crushed to death by a wall at school, was finally laid to rest.
Signed ‘with all the love in the world’ by members Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan and Liam Payne, the touching message read: ‘It makes us extremely proud to have had a fan as spe-
‘Honoured to have brought her happiness’
cial as Keane. We have all been deeply saddened by what has happened.
‘We understand that no words can console those who knew her. We are thinking of her as we are all of you.
‘We are honoured to have brought her happiness in any way. She will be greatly missed.‘
More than 500 mourners gathered to bid a tearful farewell to the schoolgirl who died when a wall collapsed on her in a gym changing room at Liberton High School, Edinburgh, on April 1.
Many of her friends and schoolmates dressed up in bright clothes and colourful ‘onesies’ to attend the service at the chapel of Mortonhall Crematorium in Edinburgh.
The schoolgirl’s coffin was pulled by two white horses and followed by her tearful family and friends who had made up sweatshirts in her memory.
In an earlier statement, her family said: ‘Keane will be sadly missed by all her family and friends. She was our princess who dreamed of being Prime Minister. But failing that, a beautician.
‘She loved her girlfriends and her days out shopping with lunches and all things girly.
‘She recently attended her first under-18s disco and loved every second of it and was excited to be going to see One Direction in concert.’
Friends wrote ‘ Keane’s Song’ especially for the funeral and it was performed by guitarist David McNeish.
Two of Keane’s friends then stood to perform The Proclaimers f avourite, Sunshine on Leith. Keane was described as ‘one in a million’ by the Rev Cameron Mackenzie.
He said: ‘Basically everywhere Keane went, she left a trail of gli t t er. She was smart and compassionate.
‘Keane was ready for the challenges of High School and she was revelling in her new-found and expansive opportunities to learn and grow as a human being.
‘She was always part of a loving family.
‘She will not know many of the life events that friends will know and that is tragedy. Tragedy for Keane, her parents and to the extended family.
‘The one thing I do not want us to do today is to lose sight of just how sad and indeed heartbreaking it is, my friends.
‘We will never forget this time in our lives. We will always remember Keane. I would ask you that you never forget Keane or her family.
‘The single thing that has kept this family on their feet during the terrible loss of Keane has been the vast amount of love that they have received from you as they journey through their loss of Keane – love received from One Direction, love received from all of you gathered here today, and from many other perfect strangers who have expressed love and sadness to Keane’s family.’
Liberton High will reopen after the Easter holidays, but the gym where Keane died will remain closed while an investigation by Police Scotland and the Health and Safety Executive continues.