Village comes to standstill to honour mother and children who died in suspected triple murder-suicide
Hundreds gather at Clare church ahead of funerals of mum and kids killed in Fermanagh shooting
It was a homecoming forged from heartbreak for a proud Clare community.
Vanessa Whyte (45) and her two children, James (14) and Sara (13), had been planning to spend a short break in her native Barefield over the August bank holiday weekend from their Fermanagh home.
Instead, the mother's coffin was flanked by those of her two children in the Church of the Immaculate Conception in the small village just 6km from Ennis.
The village has been left numb with shock by the scale of the tragedy that has struck a well-respected local family.
Ms Whyte and her two children died from gunshot wounds inflicted at their Maguiresbridge home in Fermanagh on July 23.
The man suspected of the triple shooting, Ian Rutledge (43), was discovered by PSNI officers at the property with gunshot injuries. He died in hospital on Monday.
The PSNI believes Mr Rutledge, who was Vanessa's husband and the father of James and Sara, shot his family.
Ms Whyte is survived by her mother, Mary, and her siblings, Geraldine, Regina, Anita, Ivor and Stephen.
All poignantly followed the three coffins as they were carried on the shoulders of family, friends and GAA clubmates into the Barefield church at 2.15pm today.
The village came to a standstill as the cortege wound its way from the Whyte home to the village church, with hundreds lining the main street as a mark of respect.
Mourners gathered outside the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Barefield in Co Clare this afternoon. Photo: Eamon Ward
The church that had hosted Ms Whyte's first holy communion and confirmation will today stage her requiem mass and those of the son and daughter she adored.
Yesterday evening was the opportunity for locals, neighbours, friends, former classmates and GAA clubmates to try to console the inconsolable.
Outside the church, a lengthy queue of mourners wound across the churchyard, down to the gate and out past the manicured roadside verges and flowerbeds of the picturesque village.
Many mourners wore the saffron and blue of Ms Whyte's beloved Clare
The three flagpoles outside the church flew the colours of the Republic, Clare and St Joseph's Doora-Barefield at half-mast.
All three hearses parked in parallel on the main street outside the church – with floral tributes all in either Clare or Barefield colours.
Hundreds of mourners wore bright colours to honour the family's request for a special visual tribute to Ms Whyte and her children.
News in 90 Seconds - Saturday, August 2
Local shops and houses put flowers in their windows as a mark of respect.
Many mourners wore the saffron and blue of Ms Whyte's beloved Clare.
He coffin was covered by the maroon and white colours of the local St Joseph's Doora-Barefield GAA club with which her family is so entwined.
Ms Whyte wore the same colours as a child in juvenile competitions while her late father, Joe, was a lifelong GAA player and fan.
He was intensely proud of the fact he was a member of the very first St Joseph's Doora-Barefield panel to win the Clare senior hurling crown 71 years ago
Two of Ms Whyte's brothers, Stephen and Ivor, played for Doora-Barefield and members of the Whyte family would attend virtually every match, both juvenile and senior, played by the club.
The remains of Vanessa Whyte, draped in a Doora/Barefield flag, and her children James and Sara are carried to the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Barefield, Co Clare. Photo: Eamon Ward
Ivor is now based in Australia but flew home immediately after he heard of the tragic death of his sister, nephew and niece.
The GAA club will provide a guard of honour for the funeral – and officials assisted with stewarding as locals rallied to show solidarity with the Whyte family.
In the queue, grown men – probably fearless on the hurling pitch – fought in vain to hold back tears as they sympathised with Ms Whyte's devastated family.
The three coffins were brought into the church with symbols of the three young lives – ranging from a family photo to hurleys, GAA jerseys and a bag of balloons in the colours of Ms Whyte's beloved Clare.
Ennis parish priest Fr Tom Ryan welcomed the remains into Barefield church. Today's requiem mass will be led by the Bishop of Ferns and former Killaloe priest, Gerard Nash.
It is difficult to speak about and comprehend
Parish priest Fr Tom Fitzpatrick last week echoed the words of Fr Raymond Donnelly at the service of removal in Maguiresbridge, Co Fermanagh, when he said the community had been shaken to its very core by the loss of a devoted mother and two beautiful children.
Fr Fitzpatrick said people locally were struggling to come to terms with what happened.
'It is difficult to speak about and comprehend – or to get our minds around,' he said.
Like Fr Donnelly, he assured the Whyte family they were not alone and that the community would rally to support them in their hour of heartbreak.
'What affects an individual or a family in a parish affects everyone,' he said. 'Everyone here is walking in the shadows of the cross with you.'
Vanessa Whyte with her children Sara and James. Photo: PA
Some mourners had parked just up the road from the Church of the Immaculate Conception by Le Chéile cafe and Hassetts Bar on Barefield's main street.
Every time she returned to Barefield, Ms Whyte called to Le Chéile for a coffee, a snack and a catch-up on local news with her Clare friends.
Now, mourners used the adjacent car park as they went to offer sympathy and solidarity to Vanessa's devastated relatives and tried to make sense of a tragedy that wiped out an entire young family.
Some mourners wept as they waited to extend their condolences to the extended members of the Whyte family, who are one of the bedrocks of the proud community.
Others simply stood in disbelief at how a planned joyful August homecoming could be transformed into one of such devastation.
In Barefield, some took comfort in remembering the incredible woman that Vanessa was – and how she adored her children James and Sara.
Vanessa was an incredible student, a great sportswoman and was always full of fun
All three will be buried together after noon requiem mass today at nearby Templemaley Cemetery.
Those shocked by the tragedy have also been asked to consider making a contribution to Women's Aid.
Ms Whyte attended Barefield primary school – about 1km from the church – and then went to Coláiste Muire in Ennis.
Former Barefield national school principal John Burns said the entire parish was in shock at the tragedy.
'Everyone in the parish is absolutely heartbroken – Vanessa was an incredible student, a great sportswoman and was always full of fun.'
Vanessa Whyte with her teenage children Sara and James
'She was an incredible student and was one of the stars of our table quiz team.'
He said Barefield was a very proud parish where everyone would now unite to support the family in their time of need.
'Everyone here will be there for them.'
She was an honours student and, for her Leaving Cert in 1998, scored top marks, easily securing her dream course of veterinary studies in University College Dublin (UCD).
'We are deeply shocked by the news,' Scoil Muire principal Jean Pound said. 'Our thoughts are with Vanessa's family at this most difficult time.'
Ms Whyte graduated from UCD in 2003 and began a career as a vet.
She worked for a time for Lakelands Veterinary Services before taking up a position with the Northern Ireland Department of Agriculture in Enniskillen.
Locals remembered her as an honours student and someone who adored sport, especially her beloved Clare senior hurling team.
Vanessa was thrilled to be in Croke Park last year when Clare won the Liam MacCarthy Cup.
Mourners follow the hearses containing the coffins of Vanessa Whyte and her children Sara and James following their service of removal at St Mary's Church in Maguiresbridge, Co Fermanagh. Photo: PA
Barefield locals pointed to the fact that so many of the images in the media over the past week had been of Ms Whyte in Clare colours, proudly standing beside her children.
Councillor Clare Colleran Molloy said it was deeply upsetting that yet another murder-suicide/attempted suicide had left an Irish community devastated.
'It is so, so sad that we are dealing with another tragedy like this in Ireland,' she said.
Cllr Colleran-Molloy said it was 'beyond words' that yet another young Irish mother and her children had died in such horrific circumstances.
'My thoughts are with the family. This is a very strong community and people will rally together to support this family in every way they possibly can.'
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