Hundreds of mourners attended the funeral of Peter O'Keeffe in Cork yesterday, five days after the 37-year-old drowned after being swept out to sea from Owenahincha strand in west Cork. Mr O'Keeffe and Jonathan Herlihy (23), from Glanmire, Co Cork, drowned saving Cliona Murphy and Lee Cooley.
At yesterday's Requiem Mass in St Mary and John's Church in Ballincollig, Co Cork, Mr O'Keeffe's sister, Yvonne, read out words composed by his fiancee, Anne Riordan. The two were due to marry next February.
The night before he died, Mr O'Keeffe attended a wedding with his fiancee at the Celtic Ross Hotel in west Cork. On Sunday morning, they went for a walk on nearby Owenahincha strand. Mr O'Keeffe noticed a couple in difficulty and grabbed a lifebuoy and ran in. Ms Riordan never saw him alive again.
Ms Riordan described her fiance as the "most loving person" she had met. "Peter was superficially quiet and unassuming, but just below the surface was one of the funniest, joyous and most caring people you could know. He would have given his right arm for you. In particular, in the past year, I know he had been so happy. He explained away his expanding waistline to contentment, and we had it all. There was so much joy. He had a great Saturday night. He even danced the night away. And now he is safe with his late mother - beautiful man. All my love, Peter."
Six priests concelebrated the funeral Mass, including Owenahincha parish priest Father Pat McCarthy and Father Jim Donovan, a friend of the O'Keeffe family. They were joined on the altar by the Bishop of Cork and Ross, Dr John Buckley.
Father Donovan said that the people of Peter O'Keeffe's native Ballincollig had been numbed by the tragedy. He described Peter and the late Mr Herlihy as heroes . "The sea shows no admiration and no mercy even to those who do heroic acts. They both died as comrades. What bravery and what a heroic deed and what a sacrifice. The ultimate act of love is laying down our lives for others."
Mr O'Keeffe is survived by his father Reg, fiancee Anne and sisters Suzanne, Yvonne, Gillian and Shirley. He was laid to rest alongside his late mother, Peg, in St Oliver's Cemetery at Model Farm Road, Cork.