'A light had gone out for all of us' - Stephen McCahill laid to rest in Ardara

A town and a county still stunned and utterly saddened by the tragic loss of one of its own came together today to say a final farewell to murdered businessman and community activist Stephen McCahill.

The normally bustling market town of Ardara came to a standstill as mourners lined the streets to pay their respects to a man who did so much to promote the town and its people.

Few who were able to pay their respects to the 66-year-old publican and auctioneer at the Church Of The Holy Family were not there. They came not just from Ardara and Mr McCahill's hometown of Glenties but from across Donegal and much further afield, such was the huge number of lives the former Donegal Person of the Year had touched in so many different ways.

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The cold and empty feeling of a town robbed of one of its hardest-working and most-loved citizens was matched only by the bitter cold of the freezing January air and its still icy streets.

Numbed fingers and numbed hearts as young and old continued to struggle to process the violent episode, which had rocked their normally tranquil and fun-loving picture postcard town to its core five days ago.

Mr McCahill died following what Gardai said was a fatal assault at his home at Breagh, Ardara, just before 4am on Monday morning last. A 32-year-old local man, Michael Maloney, a relation of the victim by marriage, has since been charged with the murder of Mr McCahill.

The haunting sounds of 'Nearer My God To Thee' from renowned fiddler Matt McGranghan echoed across the town as the funeral cortege came through the town, stopping outside his Corner House Bar, where Mr McCahill had made so many friends over the years.

In the funeral cortege behind Mr McCahill's hearse was his heartbroken wife Marietta, a constant in his life who also worked at the Corner House Bar.

Also in the cortege were the couple's two loving adult children, Gemma and Steven, who both live in New York but were both home in Donegal for the Christmas period. Also amongst the mourners was Mr McCahill's daughter-in-law Lauren and his granddaughter, Marykate, as well as his extended family and huge circle of friends.

The late Mr McCahill was pre-deceased by his parents Eileen and Packie and by his brother Micheal.

Members of Ardara GAA Club flanked the hearse, Mr McCahill's coffin draped in his beloved GAA club's flag and a floral tribute with the word 'Dad' by its side.

Among those in the guard of honour were Donegal's first All-Ireland winning captain, Anthony Molloy, a close personal friend of the late Mr McCahill.

A lone piper then escorted Mr McCahill's hearse into the grounds of the Church Of The Holy Family for his funeral mass. Many stood outside in the still, cold air as businesses throughout the town closed as a mark of respect, some with black floral wreaths hanging from their doors.

Parish priest of Ardara, Fr Aodhan Cannon, said a light has gone out in the local community since Stephen's sudden passing.

"On Monday, I couldn't help but notice that our town's Christmas lights had been turned off. Our parish and our community had been plunged into darkness with Stephen's violent and unjust death."

"We were left feeling a sense of shock and disbelief, anger and intense grief, as well as many unanswered questions, that someone who was so pivotal in our community had died like that.

"With Stephen's death, a light had gone out for all of us, but especially for you Marietta, Gemma, Steven, Lauren, his granddaughter, Marykate, and so many others. This is not how it should be. This is not what God desires for his children."

"One of six children born in the neighbouring parish of Glenties, Stephen came from humble beginnings on Eileen and Packie McCahill's farm.

"Stephen grew up on the family farm in Derries, doing all those things expected of someone living on the farm - saving hay, gathering potatoes and so on."

That was cited as a vital part of forming Stephen's outlook on life, with Fr Cannon saying that his "humble background helped keep his feet on the ground, and gave him a great compassion for dealing with people."

After graduating, Stephen would move to Dublin for a number of years, where, according to Fr Cannon, his apartment became "a hub for the Donegal diaspora."

"He did what he did all his life - he reached out in friendship to everyone who arrived in the capital, and helped to set them up with work and accommodation."

Fr Cannon said that Stephen was a valued member of the parish community, and that the entire community had been stunned by his death.

"Whenever we lose someone we love and respect so much, words fail us," he said. "But at a time like this we can fall back on the word of God, and scripture to come to terms with Stephen's death."

"The first sentence of the first reading set the tone for us: 'the virtuous person, though he dies before his time, will find rest.' Stephen McCahill was a virtuous man; he lived the virtues of faith, hope and love. He wasn't afraid to acknowledge publicly that faith, a faith that assured stability in his life, and was always here on a Sunday morning for 11 o'clock mass."

"Stephen was a valued member of our parish community, serving on both the finance committee and the parish pastoral council. Stephen was always the first one to show up with a hoover when there was a spring clean here in the chapel."

"Towards the end of that reading, it captures, I suppose in a way, how we feel. We look on, uncomprehending, not understanding what happened, or why it has happened."

"There is just so much you could say about Stephen McCahill; all of us have our own stories. But it seems to be that there are three main areas in his life: his many business interests, where he made many a few friends, his energetic involvement in this community, making it a better place to live. Stephen, though, would be the first to acknowledge that things wouldn't happen without hard-working people. But in many cases, Stephen was the motivator, the inspiration, and the vision.

"And then, his personal life with family and friends. The outpouring of affection and love in (recent days) speaks volumes to that part of his life."

"In the second reading, we say, '"We trust that the one who began this good work in Stephen, will see it finished when the day of Jesus Christ comes.'"

"In one of the many tributes this week to Stephen, a parishioner said that Stephen was the 'go-to' person. If anyone was in trouble, either financially or in their relationships, Stephen was there to help. Affectionately known as 'the major', by the Ukrainians who arrived in Ardara, Stephen reached out to them as he did so many others.

"While the family chose the readings, I chose the gospel today. Commonly called The Last Judgement, I think it captures the essence of who Stephen McCahill is - 'in so far as you did this to one of the least of my brothers and sisters, you did it to me'

"Stephen gave many a person a second chance when others didn't. Stephen's goodness mattered and made a real difference."

"This parish and this praying community, that Stephen sought to improve, escaped shaken to the core to say the least. But I know that its solidarity and its care for each other will help in the days and the time ahead."

"I am reminded of a line from one of Seamus Heaney's poems: 'the space we stood around was emptied into us to keep.'"

"Each one of us has a duty to keep Stephen's legacy alive. Death does not end relationships, but it changes them. The love Stephen gave is not buried with him, but it lives on, especially in you, Marietta, in Gemma, and Steven and the extended family and friends, and the people he nurtured and shaped.

"So today I entrust Stephen to God's mercy, his family to God's tenderness, and the community to God's peace. We place him now in the hands of God, whose heart is wider than our terrible grief, whose justice is greater than our anger, and whose love is stronger than death."

Several touching symbols were brought to the altar during his funeral mass, including a book detailing the history of Stephen's beloved Corner Bar, a picture of a boat docked in Killybegs, a bicycle helmet, a Claddagh symbol, his Donegal Person of the Year award from 2016, an Ardara GAA jacket, and a photo of his family.

The book represented his 25 years of dedication to the Corner Bar, its patrons, and his staff, and mourners were told that Stephen made sure that "anyone who came into the bar was made to feel welcome, and would want to return again."

A photo of a boat docked in Killybegs represented his lifelong work on behalf of the local fishing industry.

His childhood friend, Mary Gavigan-Breslin, delivered the bicycle helmet to the altar - in memory of the Sunday morning cycles the two would so often share.

The Claddagh symbol represented the deep value Stephen placed on friendship throughout his life, and the appreciation for all those he kept close.

His Donegal Person of the Year Award was delivered to the altar by the Donegal Association's Kathleen Sheerin, representing his lifetime of work in Ardara and across the county.

An Ardara GAA jacket, delivered by Molloy, demonstrated Stephen's deep roots within the organisation, both locally and county-wide.

From winning a Senior B title with his own club in the 1980s, to being a custodian of the Sam Maguire Cup in both 1992 and 2012, and working as part of Ardara GAA's leadership structure, his devotion to the organisation was most notable.

Finally, a family picture was delivered by Stephen's daughter-in-law, Lauren, showing "what mattered most" to him, his family providing his "greatest source of happiness" in life.

At the end of the moving service, a short speech was given by a close friend of Stephen's.

He recalled: "When Stephen went to Dublin, he often stayed in one of the hotels in Harcourt Street. Not many people may
be aware of this, but in quiet moments, he went down to the University Church on St Stephen's Green, and had a quiet moment of contemplation."

"Many of us are familiar with that beautiful prayer by the founder of that Church, Saint John Henry Newman.

"The prayer: 'May the Lord support us all the day long, until the shades lengthen, and the evening comes. And the busy world is hushed, and the fever of life is over, and our work is done. Then, in his mercy, may he give us a safe lodging, and hold rest and peace to the last, amen.'"

"Goodbye my friend, goodbye your friend. Rest in peace."

Outside, mourners waited in the freezing January air as Mr McCahill's remains were carried to his final resting place in the adjoining cemetery.