'We are shattered': Dad-of-two Anthony Devlin due to wed this year, funeral hears

Fr John Walsh pointed to the silence in St Mary's Chapel, Cockhill, as he outlined how the parish was 'shattered' at the funeral Mass of Anthony Devlin.

The 32-year-old father-of-two was killed in a workplace accident in Buncrana on Tuesday and was laid to rest in Cockhill cemetery.

Mr Devlin was due to wed fiancée Grainne in December and the couple only recently completed a marriage preparation course.

Mr Devlin, a mechanic, was killed in a freak accident last Tuesday at Sarida.

“We are shattered by this event,” Fr Walsh said.

“We all feel the sadness of death. Even in a Church as packed as this, you can almost hear your own breath with the silence of the congregation.”

Fr Walsh recalled getting a call from An Garda Síochána last Tuesday and, as he navigated the Kinnegoe crossroads, the realisation dawned that the young couple were due to get married.

“It is so sad,” Fr Walsh said.

He told how Mr Devlin and his partner had two sons, Joe and Odhran.

“His two sons were Daddy's boys,” Fr Walsh said. “He loved them intensely. He would come from his work in the shed and read them stories before they went to sleep.

“Anthony was kind and helpful. He would do anything for everybody. He could speak to anybody.”

London-born, Anthony moved home with his family to attend Illies school and later he attended Scoil Mhuire.

A former teacher recalled “an absolutely delightful young man” and Fr Walsh said he was “a gifted pupil”.

A car enthusiast, he competed in the single-seater Formula Vee series and he was a self-taught mechanic.
After spending some time in Australia, he returned to Donegal in 2017.

Late of Dun Na Ri Slavery, Anthony will be sadly missed by his fiancée Grainne, sons Joe and Odhran, parents Philip and Una, sisters Tara, Tina, Leanne, brother-in-law Ian, granny Annie Devlin and a wide circle of family and friends.