IN a remarkably poignant moment, the escort who accompanied stunning Dorothy Moriarty-Henggeler during the 2011 Rose of Tralee festival placed a single red rose by her coffin at her funeral mass in Killarney.
Tears flowed freely as Barry Donnelly from Tyrone, who was constantly by Dorothy’s side when she represented Washington DC at the festival, slowly walked up the aisle to the altar in St Mary’s Cathedral during the offertory procession.
The Rose contestants and their escorts from three years ago – described by Dorothy’s dad as her sisters and brothers – turned out in force as a gesture of respect to their hugely popular pal who was laid to rest at Aghadoe Cemetery just a day after her 28th birthday.
Dorothy, who passed away at her home in Maryland after a five-month battle with a brain tumor, was granted her last wish to be buried in her mother’s native Killarney which was the place she called home.
During the course of an emotion-charged service, the packed congregation was reminded that Dott – as she was affectionately known – arrived into the world just two years after her only sister, Treasa, had died at the age of two and a half.
Treasa had been holidaying in Killarney with her parents when she contracted meningitis and she lost her battle for life at Tralee General Hospital.
Dorothy was laid to rest beside the sister she never met but grew to love so deeply, overlooking the lakes and mountains of the town she visited every chance she got.
“Dorothy had an unbelievable attachment to the sister she never saw. She was sent by Treasa to her family 28 years ago, a gift from God,” principal celebrant Fr Kieran O’Brien told mourners.
He said no parent can ever know how life is going to unfold for their children but for Eibhlín and Dick Henggeler, Dorothy’s passing was a repeat of what happened with Treasa 30 years ago.
“Treasa and Dorothy are now getting to know each other in heaven, a place they now call home,” he said.
Fr O’Brien said Dorothy enjoyed everything about life and would be remembered for being so happy, bubbly and full of fun.
“She was a very special person, a Rose inside and out. Those that knew her will remember her persistent smile, her optimism in life and her good nature.
“Today we send a Rose back to God. We give Him a most beautiful flower to brighten up his garden.”
Fr O’Brien said representing Washington DC in the Rose of Tralee festival three years ago was the greatest chapter in Dorothy’s life, an unforgettable experience and a dream come true for a young girl who always wanted to be a Rose.
“The friends she made then have become sisters for life, a big happy family as was proven to Dorothy’s own family during her illness in recent weeks and months,” he said.
Gifts to symbolize Dott’s life were brought to the altar during the funeral service and they included her baptismal gown, her Holy Communion dress, ballet shoes and the crown and sash she wore during the Rose of Tralee.
Jersey
To mark her love of sport, there was a Baltimore Ravens shirt autographed by celebrated quarterback Joe Flacco, a Dr Crokes jersey signed by the entire team and a Kerry jersey signed by the other Roses from 2011 and presented to Dorothy to cheer her up during her illness.
Other gifts included a book about Ireland to mark her dream job with Tourism Ireland and a Jonathan Livingston Seagull book Reaching for the Stars, extracts from which were read to Dott by her family in recent weeks.
Speaking from the pulpit at the close of the Mass, Dorothy’s father, Dick, said his daughter was famous for making friends and nothing would have pleased her more than to see all the Roses and escorts together in the church.
“Her hobby was collecting friends – I think she was trying to get into the Guinness Book of Records,” he smiled.
“I’m sure Dott is already collecting more friends in heaven and her friends here are now our family.”
“When we lost Treasa we prayed for another daughter and the joy Dorothy gave us has been immeasurable. When she entered a room the smiles would become bigger and the laughter louder,” he said.
Prayer
Dorothy’s mother Eibhlin, originally from Killarney, recited their favourite prayer and her only brother, Franz, recalled a much-loved sister who cared for everybody and everything at all times.
To illustrate how kind and gentle she was, he recalled a day when their father decided to get rid of an ugly, old, brown station wagon they had for years but when he reached the vehicle, he found Dorothy lying across the hood of the car crying because she would miss it.
“She had so much love to give she didn’t know where to stop. She was some kind of woman,” said Franz.
Fittingly, as Dorothy’s remains were shouldered from St Mary’s Cathedral, to begin her final journey through the streets of the town she loved, Killarney tenor Michael Sexton delivered a hugely emotional rendition of the Rose of Tralee.
