By Róise Collins

THE community of Donegal Town has been plunged into grief following the tragic passing of a local teenager and a local man in recent days.

Tomorrow the funeral of teenager Dylan Ward will take place in St Mary’s Church, Killymard at 11am.

He was a third year student at Abbey Vocational School.

Meanwhile, the search for Donegal man Mark Kiely who had been missing in Portugal was stood down on Monday when his family confirmed he was sadly found dead.

The 39-year-old was reported missing after he was last seen in the Albufeira Old Town in the early hours of Saturday morning.

His funeral details have yet to be announced.

In response to the two tragedies the local community have rallied to support both families.

Donegal Town FC, where Dylan played for the U16 team, opened its facility yesterday evening to provide a drop in for players, their friends, families and the wider community.

“To Dylan’s many friends, and to his teammates at Donegal Town FC, we know his infectious energy and bright spirit, both on and off the football field, will be sorely missed,” they said in a post on social media.

The club also paid tribute to Mark, who played underage football with them in the past, sharing how they were all “deeply saddened by his loss.”

The Bluestack Special Needs Foundation in Donegal Town postponed its weekly lotto draw on Tuesday night as a mark of respect to both grieving families.

The Church of Ireland community in Donegal Town was among those who took to social media to express their sympathies to the families.

A Heritage Walk event scheduled to take place at the Old Rectory in Inver on Saturday afternoon has also been cancelled as a mark of respect.