By Paul McElwee
“He left us too soon”: those were the words of Fr Donnchadh O’Baoill at the funeral of Jamie Diver, one of the two young men tragically killed in a fatal collision in Gortahork at the weekend.
Scores of mourners packed into Christ the King Church in Gortahork yesterday morning as friends and family said a final goodbye.
Jamie and his friend Shaun McClafferty were pronounced dead at the scene of the single-vehicle collision on Friday night when the car they were in collided with a gable wall in the townland of Baltoney. Two others who were in the car were injured, one of whom was since transferred to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin.
The funeral of Shaun McClafferty will take place today (Thursday), also at Christ the King Church.
At yesterday’s funeral Mass, chief celebrant Fr O’Baoill welcomed those present, noting that the huge turnout showed how “one person can affect a whole community and gather us together”.
Symbols of Jamie’s life and work were brought up to the altar including his work hat, a spanner and a buffer, along with a cup as Fr O’Baoill noted how “Jamie liked the tea”.
In his homily Fr O’Baoill spoke fondly of Jamie, detailing how, as a young man, his initial desire was to become a firefighter before transitioning his interest into cars, studying in Letterkenny before opening his own business. He spoke of the pride Jamie had in his work, working late nights and early mornings.
“Jamie was someone for whom work took priority, leaving him no time for girlfriends,” Fr O’Baoill said.
“He was a perfectionist whose motto was ‘if something is worth doing, it’s worth doing well’ and he stuck to that. Everything had to be perfect.
“Jamie was someone who was always willing to help others, whether it was buffering cars or helping other people fix their own.”
His perfectionist mantra was further highlighted when Fr O’Baoill recounted a story where Jamie once over-buffed a car, leaving a scratch on it and himself “mortified and upset” and how his family and friends rallied round to persuade him it was just a scratch, a mistake, highlighting his desire to do everything as well as he possibly could.
Fr O’Baoill continued, “Jamie will be sorely missed and there are many people who today have broken hearts. His death reminds us of the importance of life; we have but one chance and we should use it to be the best that we can possibly be and, with God’s grace, we can do it.
“Young people are the most important bridge any community has; there is nothing more valuable than your young people who are our future.
“Jamie, you left us too soon but we are all thankful for knowing you and better people for knowing you.”
Following the Mass, Jamie was interred in the adjoining cemetery.
Jamie is predeceased by his grandparents Jimmy and Rose McGee and Nora Diver. He will be sadly missed by his heartbroken parents, Róise and Damien, his brothers Ryan – and partner Niamh – and Keith, his nephew Charlie, his uncle Kevin and wife Amanda, his cousins Eibhlin and Neil, and a circle of friends.
The late Jamie Diver, who died in the collision in Gortahork on Friday night with his friend, Shaun McClafferty.
Related posts:
Receive quality journalism wherever you are, on any device. Keep up to date from the comfort of your own home with a digital subscription.
Any time | Any place | Anywhere
SUBSCRIBE TO CURRENT EDITION TODAY
and get access to our archive editions dating back to 2007(CLICK ON THE TITLE BELOW TO SUBSCRIBE)