'Her name was Grace, she was grace by nature' - Fr Meehan honours late Presentation student

The late Grace McSweeney has been described as "grace by nature" by the priest who baptised her when she was an infant. 

Father Billy Meehan told the gathered congregation at St Peter and Paul's Church of the moment he found out about the collision which took the life of Grace, her sibling Luke, and friends Zoey Coffey and Nicole Murphy. 

He said, "On Friday night when I got the call from the Garda station to come to Hillview to an accident, I went up an annointed four bodies laid out on the tarmac. It was only later on when I went to the hospital I realised the names and realised I had baptised Luke and Grace, and that I had married their parents, Paul and Bridget." 

Describing Grace, he said, "Grace was a diligent little girl full of life, she loved dancing and was a great gymnast, she loved going to Loreto and teaching other young children the mechanics of gymnastics.

"We all remember at this year's St Patrick's Day Parade when Grace did her little routine before the parade stand and how graceful she was and how professional her performance was. 

"Her name was Grace, she was grace by nature. She was grace by disposition." 

He also mentioned her proficiency at recording the times and scores at matches on an app on her phone. 

He said, "If you wanted to know who scored and what time, you went to Grace." 

He described Luke and Grace as "the angels of peace to us all". 

He said, "The legacy that Luke and Grace will leave with us is a legacy of spirituality, because God meant a lot to Luke and Grace. Let's hope that that message will be picked up by all their friends and their companions."