Gracie McDonnell’s mum Lynn has told mourners she will never fear anything again – losing her beloved daughter was the worst thing that can ever happen to her.
Her dad Chris told Gracie’s funeral Mass that his daughter taught him to love.
And he apologized to the six-year-old for not being there to protect her when Adam Lanza opened fire at the Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Mum Lynn placed her daughter’s favorite stuffed animal on the lectern at St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church.
She then told mourners: “I can never be afraid of anything again, because losing my daughter was the worst, most painful thing that could ever happen to me.
“Gracie made me fearless. We were best friends, soul mates and sister girls.”
Heartbroken dad Chris McDonnell told the packed church: “I am so, so sorry for not being there to protect you Gracie on that horrible day.”
Irish-American Chris then thanked her for bringing so much love, life and laughter into his life. He said: “You taught me how to love.”
Grace was one of the 20 dead students remembered when church bells rang out 26 times across America on Friday as the nation remembered those killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Little Gracie’s funeral mass saw her cousins wear pink in her honor while the priest celebrated the Mass in a pink vestment.
Lynn McDonnell said her daughter loved ‘exploring the beach with her Nana, playing in the ocean, and dressing up in pink, purple and sparkles.'
She added that their secret handshake was a bedtime ritual that took 10 minutes.
Reports say sobbing mourners sang the song ‘Amazing Grace’ as the grieving family members exited the church.
Bagpipers played as the little girl’s body was taken away.
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.haasny007 | Dec 22, 2012, 07:17 PM EST
The N.R.A. is an organization that is aiding and abetting America's homegrown suicide terrorists and should be treated as such. I urge wealthy gun control advocates to file lawsuits against the NRA, in honor and on behalf of the victims and their families, based on the NRA's vital role in making the most lethal weapons easily accessible to suicide murderers. The NRA is therefore an accessory to every single mass shooting perpetrated by deranged murderers with assault weapons.
Searlit | Dec 22, 2012, 01:17 PM EST
All those lovely children. It's too sad for words. I say a prayer every night since this day of terror, that the families will heal. The pain is so raw on the faces of these families, it breaks my heart.
McNamara31 | Dec 22, 2012, 12:31 PM EST
God Bless
hughaed | Dec 22, 2012, 12:20 PM EST
There is an unbearable sadness in Grace's death. Such a beautiful child that any parent or grandparent would have been extremely proud & delighted to have in their family. Yet, she was also part of the extended family of all Irish & Irish Americans who are trying to grapple with this latest example of the indifference to human life that has become so much part of America's gun culture. We all grieve at Grace's passing.