A MASS was held yesterday evening to pray for the repose of Nóra Quoirin’s soul in the family’s parish in London.
The mass, which was held in the family’s local Catholic church of St. Bede’s near Clapham Park, was held by Father Marcus Holden, and he spoke of the need for faith at this terribly difficult time.
Nóra was well-known and much-loved in the community. She had received her first holy communion in the church some years ago and had been attending weekly mass there with her family since she was a toddler.
The community are palpably wounded by the fifteen-year-old’s disappearance and subsequent death, with Nóra’s old classmates, teachers and family friends among those who attended the mass.
Fr Holden spoke of how Nóra’s special needs extracted love from the community, and when asked what he would like Nóra to be remembered for, he said it was for that love.
Though the service was held in one of the biggest cities in the world, the atmosphere was one of a small and close-knit village, with the local people in shock from the loss of such a vibrant part of the community.
Nóra’s family are currently still in Malaysia with their daughter, but preparations have begun in order to bring Nóra home.
The fifteen-year-old, who had holoprosencephaly, went missing on the first day of a family holiday in Malaysia.
Though the area in which she vanished was desperately searched by a crew of over 350 people, her body was discovered on 13 August, ten days after her disappearance.
A post-mortem revealed that she had died from prolonged hunger and stress.
Our sincere condolences to Nóra's family and friends.
