Medjugorje pilgrim laid to rest

The discovery of the body of missing pilgrim Winnie Brady has brought "closure" to her family, a priest said yesterday.

Fr Bernard Hughes said it had been "four trying months" for the family, between her disappearance in Medjugorje last September and the discovery of her body earlier this month.

He told the congregation which gathered for Mrs Brady's funeral Mass at St Paul's Church in Ayrfield, near Coolock in north Dublin, yesterday morning: "She is now back home in her home parish lying here before God's altar and she is at peace because God has taken her to her true home in heaven."

A crowd of about 250 mourners turned out on a cold, bright day to pay their last respects to Mrs Brady (59), a mother of five surviving children and grandmother of 11.

Her husband Stephen, daughters Carmel, Linda, Joan and Una, and her son Stephen led the mourners, who also included her grandchildren, sisters Dolores and Bernie, and brothers Johnny and Joey. Taoiseach Bertie Ahern was represented by Comdt Michael Murray ADC.

Fr Hughes said Mrs Brady had been an "uncomplicated" woman who had always thought of others before herself. "Stephen and the family told me that she was a great lady with a heart of gold - a person who had a great temperament and a great sense of humour," he said. "She treated everybody with dignity and respect. Her faith was of great importance to her and she did this in her own quiet way.

"In her life, Winnie reflected the two-fold commandments of the love of God, who she served faithfully, and love of others. I know that Stephen and her family are pleased that she was found in Medjugorje and that they were able to bring closure to four very trying months."

Mrs Brady, who was on her third visit to Medjugorje, disappeared on September 6th after leaving her guesthouse for a walk. A search by 600 people failed to locate her body until it was discovered by a hunter in deep undergrowth about three kilometres (1.9 miles) from the guesthouse.

The cause of her death has not been established, but it is most likely she slipped and fell on an isolated mountainside. After Mass, a lone piper accompanied Mrs Brady's cortege to Fingal Cemetery, where she was buried.