Funeral held for 15-year-old school stabbing victim who ‘deserved so much more'
Family and friends of a 15-year-old boy who was stabbed to death at his school gathered to remember a 'social butterfly' who 'deserved so much more' and 'had dreams, plans and a future ahead of him'.
Hundreds of mourners attended Sheffield Cathedral on Friday for the funeral of Harvey Willgoose, who died after he was stabbed at All Saints Catholic High School in Sheffield on February 3.
The death of the Sheffield United fan shocked the city, and the service was also broadcast on a big screen outside the building for those who could not fit inside. Some mourners wore T-shirts with pictures of Harvey's face and anti-knife crime slogans.
Harvey's sister Sophie read a poem she had written for him, and his cousin Lana Swirles paid tribute to him as a 'loving and caring person'.
She told the congregation: 'His laughter was contagious and his kindness knew no bounds.
'His adventurous spirit inspired us to enjoy life and seek out joy in the little things.'
Leading the service, the Dean of Sheffield Cathedral Revd Abi Thompson said: 'None of us want to be here today, none of us want to be attending Harvey's funeral. But we are here, and we are here for each other.'
Sharing memories from Harvey's family, Revd Thompson said he loved fishing with his granddad, was 'never far from a scrape' and his mother Caroline recalled that as a little boy his catchphrase was: 'Isn't it a lovely day?'
She told mourners: 'One of Harvey's great gifts was his love of people, his kindness to others and his ability to talk to anyone.
'Young and old, Harvey had a way with people. He never stopped talking, he lifted people's spirits.'
Revd Thompson read a tribute from Harvey's best friend Jake, which said: 'It breaks my heart that he was taken from us far too soon in a way that never should have happened.
'Harvey deserved so much more. He had dreams, plans and a future ahead of him.
'And while he's not here with us in the way he should be, I promise I'll carry his memory with me every day.'
Revd Thompson went on to say: 'Harvey was a social butterfly and he was full of joy. Joy and love and laughter sum up Harvey's life. A life that was far, far too short.
'Many of you here today will feel pretty hopeless, miserable and afraid of what the world is like, and what the world has become.
'Amidst what feels like a very bleak day there are people here who are full of hope for the world, despite everything.
'Full of hope that the joy that was in Harvey carries far more weight than the manner of his death.'
The service contained several nods to Sheffield United Football Club – 'the great love of Harvey's life' – including a coffin with a Bramall Lane design and mourners leaving the church to famous chant The Greasy Chip Butty Song.
Other music during the service included Harvey's favourite hymn, 'Give me joy in my heart,' and 'Ho Hey' by The Lumineers.
As the funeral cortege left the cathedral for a private service at a crematorium in the city, applause broke out from mourners gathered outside.
After their son's death, Harvey's parents Caroline and Mark Willgoose released a statement which said: 'We are utterly heartbroken at the loss of our beautiful boy, 'Harvey Goose'.
'Our lives are devastated and will never be the same again.'
A boy, also 15, accused of murdering Harvey has appeared in court and was remanded into youth detention accommodation.
He is due to go on trial on June 30.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Apple Valley woman latest to be charged in Feeding our Future fraud
An Apple Valley woman is the 72nd person federally charged for her role in the $250 million fraud scheme that exploited a federally funded child nutrition program during the COVID-19 pandemic, acting U.S. Attorney Joseph H. Thompson announced on Friday. Dorothy Jean Moore, 57, of Apple Valley, was charged in a federal indictment with three counts of wire fraud and two counts of money laundering, Thompson said in a news release. According to the release, Moore launched two purported federal child nutrition program sites in late 2020 under the sponsorship of Feeding Our Future. Moore completed and signed meal count forms, claiming to have served 1,500 meals to children each day at each of her sites, which she said she operated out of community churches. Moore claimed and received reimbursements for those meals through the Feeding Our Future program, the release said. In addition, she said she operated a catering company called Jean's Soul Food and claimed additional federal reimbursements for food from that company used at the other sites. The release cited her bank records, saying they show she used 'little of the reimbursement dollars she received to purchase food. Instead, Moore used those funds for other purposes, including to purchase cars and fund an enhanced lifestyle.' She is the 72nd Minnesotan charged with defrauding the U.S. Department of Agriculture's child nutrition programs during the pandemic, when regulations temporarily were loosened and a variety of businesses and nonprofits were allowed to help feed hungry kids while schools were closed. Federal prosecutors have called the scheme the nation's largest coronavirus pandemic fraud, amounting to more than $250 million. 'This fraud is outrageous, brazen, and seemingly never-ending,' said Thompson in the release. 'Stealing from a program designed to feed vulnerable children is not only criminal — it's unconscionable,' said Special Agent in Charge Alvin M. Winston Sr. of FBI Minneapolis. Moore made her initial appearance in U.S. District Court Friday. Brooklyn Center attorney suspended by Minnesota Supreme Court U.S. Customs Border Protection officer charged with possessing child porn Man once convicted in Minnesota of supporting al-Qaida is now charged in Canada for alleged threats Jury finds Milwaukee man guilty of killing and dismembering 19-year-old woman 'We feel relief': Derrick Thompson found guilty in Minneapolis crash that killed five young women
a day ago
Jurors have convicted a Minnesota man of killing 5 young woman in a 2023 vehicle crash
MINNEAPOLIS -- A state court jury convicted a Minneapolis-area man Friday of third-degree murder and vehicular homicide in the deaths of five young women in a crash that authorities said was caused by him speeding, running a red light and slamming into their car. Jurors in Hennepin County District Court deliberated two days before reaching their verdict in the case of Derrick John Thompson, 29, of Brooklyn Park, The Minnesota Star Tribune reported. In November, a federal court jury convicted Thompson on drug and firearms charges because investigators found a handgun, ammunition and illegal drugs in his vehicle after the June 2023 crash, and he is awaiting sentencing in that case. He was convicted Friday of 15 charges and his sentencing is set for July 24. Third-degree murder is unintentionally causing a death through 'eminently dangerous' actions and with 'a depraved mind, without regard for human life.' 'His choices that day scarred many lives and affected an entire community,' Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty told reporters following the verdict, according to KARE-TV. The Minneapolis crash victims — Salma Abdikadir, Siham Adam, Sabiriin Ali, Sahra Gesaade and Sagal Hersi — were between 17 and 20 years old, on their way home from preparations for a friend's wedding. Their deaths sparked sorrow and outage among Minnesota's sizeable Somali American population. Prosecutors have said Thompson was driving a black Cadillac Escalade on a Minnesota freeway at 95 mph (153 kph) in a 55 mph- (89 kph-) speed zone and abruptly cut across four lanes of traffic to exit the freeway, flying by a state highway patrol trooper. Thompson's defense attorney, Tyler Bliss, raised questions about whether Thompson's brother might have played a role in the crash that authorities did not investigate. The brother was not charged and testified that he didn't drive the SUV the night of the crash and Thompson was the last person he saw behind the wheel. Bliss called that testimony 'self-serving.' Thompson previously served part of an eight-year prison sentence in California in connection with a 2018 hit-and-run accident that severely injured a woman in the Santa Barbara area. He was released from prison there months before the crash in Minneapolis. Court records show that Thompson is the son of a former Democratic state representative from St. Paul who was sharply critical of police during his one term in office.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Jury finds Derrick Thompson guilty on all charges in crash that killed 5 women
Jury finds Derrick Thompson guilty on all charges in crash that killed 5 women originally appeared on Bring Me The News. Derrick Thompson has been found guilty on all 15 charges for causing the death of five women in a horrific car crash in Minneapolis Thompson was traveling at speeds of up to 100 mph in an SUV rented from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport on the evening of June 16, 2023, when he exited I-35W at Lake Street and ran a red light. He smashed into a vehicle carrying Sahra Gesaade, 20, Salma Abdikadir, 20, Sagal Hersi, 19, Siham Odhowa, 19, and Sabiriin Mohamoud Ali, 17, killing all of them. In court on Friday, a jury returned a verdict of guilty on all 15 counts – five counts of 3rd-degree murder and ten counts of criminal vehicular homicide. Thompson had claimed he wasn't behind the wheel at the time of the crash, with his defense team arguing investigators had failed to determine it was his brother, Damarco, who was at fault. Thompson, the son of former Minnesota Representative John Thompson, was allegedly was weaving in and out of traffic on I-35W shortly before exiting and running the red light at the end of the ramp. According to the Sahan Journal, the women, some of whom were related, had been together to get henna tattoos applied at Karmel Mall ahead of a friend's wedding. Their families are expected to speak following the conclusion of Friday's hearing. This story was originally reported by Bring Me The News on Jun 6, 2025, where it first appeared.
