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Farewell to “kind, witty” Paul
15.09.09
1,500 gather for
Greencastle funeral:
Linda McGrory
POPULAR businessman Paul Houston had been looking
forward to playing golf in the sunny weather of
Portugal where he later met his brutal death,
mourners at his funeral in Greencastle yesterday
heard.
Local parish priest Fr Paddy O'Kane said he met
Paul, president of Greencastle Golf Club, a short
time before he headed off on the ill-fated holiday
with his wife and friends.
“It was a holiday he had been looking forward to so
much as the wet summer had been getting him down and
preventing him from playing golf, his favourite
hobby,” said Fr O’Kane. “A few weeks ago in the
shop, he told me how he was looking forward to
getting out of his wet gear and playing golf in a
t-shirt and shorts. |
“As the news of his
death spread, people asked could it be true that
this wonderful man, so popular and so much loved,
had died on holidays with his wife and friends.”
Mourners at yesterday’s funeral were torn between
laughter and tears as the 51-year old's sharp wit,
humorous escapades and kindness |
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were recalled by
friends and family.
Despite the tragedy of his violent death, his
funeral Mass in St Mary's Church, Ballybrack, was
very much a celebration of his life, his loves and
his legacy.
Fr O’ Kane read a reflection prepared by the
deceased man's elderly mother Mavis, who said her
son "touched the hearts of so many people".
"'Paul was blessed in life with many talents and
abilities. Not only did he have a fantastic sense of
humour, he also possessed a tremendous sense of fun.
He had a vivid imagination, often running riot, an
almost childlike curiosity and passion for people
and the world'," Fr O'Kane read on her behalf.
"'When you lose someone like him and particularly in
such tragic circumstances, it gives everyone the
opportunity to reflect on why we miss him so much.
Paul would really like it if his untimely death
ultimately did a lot of good'." |
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The father-of-four died
from a brain haemorrhage following a severe beating
in the village of Alvor, Portugal, in the early
hours of September 6. Portuguese police are
following a definite line of enquiry and are seeking
two Brazilian men seen in the area shortly before Mr
Houston's body was found near the local harbour.
He was attacked in a suspected robbery as he made
his way back to the hotel where he was staying with
his wife Celine and friends Philip and Marian
Devlin. Mr Devlin yesterday joined Mr Houston's
three sons, David, Christopher and Tom to carry his
coffin into the church flanked by a guard of honour
formed by the men, women and children of Greencastle
Golf Club. Among the offertory gifts were a pair of
Mr Houston's golf shoes, a putter and a karaoke
microphone while the beautiful music and song was
provided by Moville Gospel Choir.
A congregation estimated at around 1,500 people
including many members of the North West business
community, golfing fraternity, friends and
neighbours including Nobel Laureate John Hume and
his wife Pat, gathered to offer their condolences to
the chief mourners, Paul’s beloved wife, three sons,
daughter Amy, two year old grand-daughter Molly, his
mother, two brothers, Kevin and Terry and sister
Jennifer. The gathering was told of the deceased
man's great skills as a shoe salesman, with stories
abounding of customers going into his shop for a
browse and leaving with anything from one to seven
pairs of shoes.
Paying tribute to his uncle, Conor Houston, recalled
a time he was rehearsing the St Paul's Letter to the
Corinthians passage to read at his grandfather
Bernard’s funeral. Paul Houston told him he didn't
much like the Corinthians "because they never wrote
back". Mr Houston, a solicitor, proceeded to read
out the "first and only letter from the Corinthians
to Paul". He said: “Dear Paul...we should have
written to you sooner but we still can't quite
believe you're gone. We enjoyed your unique presence
immensely and we have been somewhat lost since you
left us.
"They say that when you were growing up you knew
everyone in Derry, their name, what their father did
and of course their shoe size.
"You told us how to walk with gentry, to sing with
the homeless and to get an eagle on the fourteenth
hole in Greencastle, often all in an afternoon's
work. But your greatest gift was your capacity to
love and we all knew and felt this more than you
will ever know, sincerely yours, The Corinthians,’”
read Mr Houston, to the amusement of the
congregation. Family friend Bill Browne described
the deceased man's "penetrating wit that could
puncture any pomposity or pretension". Mr Houston's
remains were taken, following mass, to the Chapel of
Rest at Carndonagh Community Hospital pending
removal to Rose Lawn Crematorium, Belfast, for
cremation. |
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