Bogue, Orla
May 23, 2007
The late Orla Bogue
There was an unprecedented public acknowledgement at the funeral in Tempo of 18-year old, Orla Bogue who died in a Belfast Hospital from injuries she sustained in an accident.
In his homily, the parish priest of Tempo, Fr John Halton, addressing the impact her death, the second in the family, had had on the immediate family, told mourners that, 'their own trouble, they had the sensitivity to worry about Cora who was driving the car in which Orla was a passenger lest she should feel in any way responsible, or worry for what was a freak accident',
Orla's younger brother, Paul (8) died in hospital in July 2006 following an incident in Portira swimming pool. Both were daughter and son of Thomas and Angela Bogue, from Largy, Garvary and sister and brother to Emma, a student teacher based in England.
Orla was a senior ladies footballer with Tempo Maguires GFC and a former county minor. She was the niece of the club chairman, Peter Bogue.
Club members, impressive in their club blazers, were very evident among the stewards at the concelebrated Mass in which Fr Halton was joined by Canon Tom Breen, PE, Dromore, a native of the parish, Canon Tom Marron, PR Trillick, formerly PP Tempo and Fr Brendan Gallagher, CC, Enniskillen who is Chaplain to Mount Lourdes Grammar School where Orla was a Year 14 student.
Fr Halton's homily was relayed via loudspeakers to those unable to gain access to St Mary's Hall, Tempo which is being used as a place of worship pending refurbishment of Tempo chapel. He said the family and the parish were filled with a sense of shock, hurt, bewilderment and numbness.
"But, that is nor all. We feel too that what has happened to Orla and to the Bogue family is unfair and cruel and doesn't fit in easily with our God of compassion and love. It puts our faith in God to the test, for we are filled with so many questions and so few answers".
He then referred to the impact already sustained by the family following Paul's death, and he revealed that, during it all, The Bogue family had talked, not just of themselves, but of the goodness of the people in the parish 'who they knew were storming heaven with prayer'.
He went on: "Those who can think of others when in agony themselves speak volumes to us all. It opens our minds to the reality that not only did Jesus suffer and die on the cross, but he also raised and lived in us".
He suggested that 'those whom God seems to treat unfairly are the ones that God has chosen for a special work': "In other words, God throws our logic upside down as He allows His friends to suffer while calling us all to a closer friendship with Him. He always carries something special up His sleeve to give to the poor in spirit when they suffer with Him".
The remainder of the homily was focused on Orla ('and, what do we about Orla who has waved us goodbye: (that) the most beautiful flowers in our world bloom for a very short time')
He said, firstly, that Orla was extremely popular within her own peer group, that she had many talents, the greatest of which was a winning and caring personality, closely followed by a sense of humour, easy company, and someone full of fun, energy, youthfulness and goodness.
"She was a natural leader who was too young to realise it, a motivator. We all know how close Paul and Orla had been, a closeness that was increased when Emma left home to do her teacher training in England. Paul's death added depth and maturity to all her natural gifts", Fr Halton went on.
"Through her experience of her life in the raw she became, unknown to herself, a role model for all the young people who surrounded her. And, Orla was the same at home and at school. At home, she had a natural open and caring relationship with her parents, and was a beacon of hope which shone even more brightly after Paul's tragic death.
"Emma was in England, but she has been in communication with home everyday, not once or twice but, often, many, many times a day. She has been a brick".
Fr Halton then related how Orla, like the rising tide, uplifted her parents with 'stories, news and excitement' from her many groups of friends neighbouring homes, school and football matches. The bag on her shoulder, he said, was filled not only with books or sports gear but also with 'the excitement of youth, the openness of friendship, the refreshing news of the day and all the requisites for a happy life now and into the future'.
At the very end of his homily, Fr Halton, on behalf of himself and the congregation, extended sympathy to her parents and to her sister and asked that Orla and Paul rest in peace.
Burial took place in nearby Edenmore Cemetery.
The funeral arrangements were carried out by John McKeegan.
Courtesy of the Fermanagh Herald
23 June 2007
Most Read Stories