A priest has called on society to “wake up” to the plight of the
homeless community, following the death of a mother-of-two whose body
was discovered last week at a vacant building in Limerick.Louise Casey, 31, a user of homelessness services, was discovered sheltering from the cold beneath a staircase at a derelict building.
Known to her family and friends as “BuBu”, she had experienced great pain at the deaths of two babies, her funeral Mass heard yesterday.
Her mother, surviving two children, sisters, and brother, gathered with other relatives at St Mary’s Church, Athlunkard, to say their goodbyes.
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Her niece, Teresa, paid tribute to her “little smiler” who adored her
family. She said: “We want to thank each and everyone of you who have
come here today for your support, following our sad news, on the passing
of our beautiful daughter, sister, mother, aunt, granddaughter.
Everyone knew Louise as ‘BuBu’. She was the most loving girl in this
earth. She adored her two kids and she thought the world of her nieces
and nephews. After the passing of her dad and her two babies, BuBu went
on a different road in life, but she never lost faith in herself.”Mourners, including pupils from the school attended by Ms Casey’s son, applauded at the end of the touching tribute.
Fr Derek Leonard told Ms Casey’s son and daughter: “This is a very tough and difficult time for you. Well done for showing such great courage and for such a great tribute to your mum. I’m sure she is very proud of you. The way Louise ended her life was very sad and very tragic, by dying on the streets. But, during this Mass we remember the life that she led. Jesus said ‘there are many rooms in my father’s house’. When Louise passed away she did not have a roof over her head, but we are promised nobody is forgotten, no matter their situation in life, no matter what place they find ourselves in.”
Addressing her heartbroken family, Fr Leonard said: “I’m sure she knew it in her heart that she was not forgotten by you. She was loved by you, especially by her children, who will never forget her. We celebrate her as a person who had a good heart, and who did a lot of good in her life. We hope she is in a place of peace and happiness and light and love.
“While she had a sad end, some good will come of this, because it is a reminder to us to open our eyes to those who are suffering around us. For many of us in Limerick - and I may have been one of them - we pass by people who are homeless and who are living on the streets, and they become invisible to us. Especially, as winter sets in, the challenge for us all is to open our eyes and see their faces. By Louise’s life, and by her death, some good may come, in that it might wake us up.”