Longford's Laura was an ‘angel in full flight’

Emotive sentiments they may be, they were ones which her distraught sister Natalie fittingly called upon at her emotionally charged funeral mass on Saturday.

A large and understandably sombre congregation lined the pews of St Mel's Cathedral from early doors, all patiently waiting to pay their final respects to a woman who personified courage and intrepidity in equal measure.

The vivacious, bubbly and Disney loving fanatic passed away in Scotland seven days previously surrounded by her family following a three year battle with incurable neuroendocrine cancer.

It was a cruel end to a life and journey Laura had dedicated almost every passing moment to in the hope of finding a cure and living out her days in Scotland alongside her beloved husband Paul and faithful dog, Chip.

That came despite a concerted and sustained fundraising campaign aptly dubbed ‘Help Laura Heal’ which had raised in excess of £400,000 in a bid to secure potentially life saving treatment for Laura in Mexico.

And while those monies will be distributed to charities of Laura's choosing, the sense of loss following months and months of painstaking fundraising on both sides of the Irish Sea was unerringly palpable last Saturday morning.

Mourners were told of how the “remarkable, kind and beautiful” Longford woman took on and fought her illness in the face of such adversity.

A single framed photograph of the avid Longford GAA fan sat perched on top of a coffin in front of the altar while poignant symbols indicative of the outgoing former Sligo IT graduate's life and times were offered up by members of her family.

Among them included characters from the Longford woman’s favourite hit Disney classic Beauty and the Beast, family wedding photos including an image of Chip, her own personalised Help Laura Heal’ logo that defined her campaign and a Longford GAA jersey.

Long time family friend and chief celebrant Fr Tom Healy at times, struggled to keep a lid on his own emotions as he recalled a personal friendship with Laura and the Gilmore family that dated back three decades.

He told of being able to still remember knocking on the door of 53 Teffia Park all those years ago not knowing what or who was ready to greet him. “What I found was an inviting home, the warmest of welcomes and house full of children and teenagers,” he said.

“I am guessing Laura was three or four at the time and from that time onwards our friendship grew and developed.”

From there, the long serving priest expressed his pride in being able to share several memorable family occasions, the most recent of which came just over four years ago in the sleepy Mayo village of Ballintubber, just outside Castlebar.

It was the day Laura, or Lozzie as she was more afffectionaly known, had long dreamed of, a day in which she exchanged wedding vows with the love of her life, her best friend and inimitable pillar of strength, Paul.

“She looked a million dollars and I suppose we all hoped and assumed that lifelong togetherness and happiness would be yours,” he said.

“It’s heartbreakingly sad we are here again just a few short years later to bid farewell to Laura and lay her to rest while still so young in years.”

In referring to a family photo contained in Laura's funeral mass booklet, Fr Healy said admitted having to sit in the same house he had knocked the front door of some 30 years later was extraordinarily “surreal”.

He said the many stories relayed to him of an ambitious, beautiful and deeply loyal young woman who lived for her family was closely comparable to those of his own.

Her nephews and nieces, he said, looked upon her as a “glamour girl” of sorts and would routinely make a “beeline” for her on her regular trips home from across the Irish Sea.

Her bond with her enduring canine companion Chip was just as remarkable, he added and one which saw the latter's mood “change quite immediately” when Laura slipped away last Saturday week.

Fr Healy's most touching and passionate of sentiments were understandably directed at Paul, who sat in the front row alongside Laura's parents Brendan and Ann.

He said the one redeeming memory to draw from the anguish of the past few weeks was how both Laura and Paul were able to celebrate their birthdays together.

In fighting back tears, Fr Healy said: “On their wedding day, Paul and Laura promised to love each other for better, for worse, in sickness and in health all the days of their lives.

“We weren’t to know Paul you would be asked to live those vows so quickly and so fully in such a challenging way.”

If those remarks stirred the hearts and minds of those watching on from the floor below, they were arguably surpassed moments later when Laura's ten-year-old niece Sophie Sheridan took centre stage.

Not an impromptu cough or passing mutter could be heard as mourners were left transfixed by a rendition of 'Loch Lomond' and 'Red is the Rose' that her much loved auntie would have been immeasurably proud of.

It was a performance that drew a round of universal applause from a hushed and heavy-hearted audience as Laura's sister Natalie recited a poem with unerring affection.

“Laura, you meant so much to all of us, you were special and that’s no lie,” she said. “You brightened up the darkest day and the cloudiest sky.

“Your smile alone warmed hearts, your laugh was like music to hear.

“I would give absolutely anything to have you well and standing near.

“Not a second passes when your not on our minds, the love we will never forget, the hurt will ease in time.

“Many tears we seen and cried, they have all poured out like rain.

“I know that you are okay now and no longer in any pain.

“Laura, if love could have saved you, you would have lived forever.

“Lozzie, our beautiful sister, we will love you forever.”

As heart-rending as those soundings were, Laura's husband Paul said his own emotions, while upside down, had been helped greatly by the support from his wife's medical team and unmitigated love of her family.

“Laura Gilmore Anderson was a remarkable, kind, beautiful and caring woman and was the best wife a man could ask for” he said.

“(She was a) dear daughter, loving sister, favouite auntie, doting godmother, devoted mother to Chip, loyal friend to so many and an inspiration to us all.”

Paul said apart from being a proud Longford native, she was just as admiring of adopted Scottish roots.

He said Laura's gregarious zest for life and how she came into his life like a “whirlwind of energy” led the pair to fall in love almost immediately.

“From that first day forward I changed forever and she taught me that true love was real and that true happiness didn’t just belong in the movies,” he said.

“She made me feel like anything was possible.

“We were a team, a unit, we were a powerhouse of love and devotion and we were inseparable from the start.”

Paul said Laura's tenacity in facing what he described as an “invisible and elusive terror” illustrated a strength of charachter neither he or his late wife knew was there.

“It was truly astonishing to stand witness in the shadow of an angel in full flight,” he said.

“I hope you can rest now and finally be at peace, you deserve to bask in the love we all have for you. Thank you kiddo, I love you.”

Outside, a large group of mourners gathered as the funeral cortege began its journey ahead of a cremation service at Lakelands Crematorium, Cavan.

The late Laura Gilmore Anderson is survived by her beloved husband Paul, dear parents Ann and Brendan, sisters Susan, Aisling, Janette and Natalie, brothers Andrew and Stephen, mother-in-law

Margaret, sisters-in-law, brothers-in-law, nieces, nephews, Chip, relatives and a wide circle of friends.