The communities of Clare and Limerick were united in sadness and in grief when Jason Lennon, the 29 year old grandson of legendary hurler Mick Mackey, was laid to rest in Shannon. Jason died tragically in London over the St Patrick's weekend and hundreds of his friends and family, including his grandmother Kitty on her 88th birthday and his remaining Mackey grand uncle James (Todsie), his aunts, uncles and cousins were with Jason's parents Eric and Audrey, his sister Audrey and brother Mark, for the removal of his remains and funeral mass on Saturday morning. His grandad's number 13 shirt and hat lay with Jason's own Wolfe Tones shirt across the coffin in St John and Paul's church. Chief celebrant Fr Tom Ryan spoke of the Lennon family's love of sport and their achievements on the field. "All-Ireland medals are not something you take too lightly as a family, and its not just confirmed to your grandad, the great Mick Mackey," he said. "The Lennon family have their own list of All-Ireland successes in Gaelic Games, Jason in the Feile of 1986, Clodagh with her camogie exploits and Mark in the 1997 All-Ireland minor final." Fr Ryan told the gathered relatives and friends it was impossible to make sense of Jason's passing: "We don't understand why Jason has died; why he has left the world so quickly or so early, indeed too early. He was only in the spring of his life and his life was a life of promise. "But last weekend he left the world so abruptly, he died before his time." His friends and neighbours carried the offerings to the altar and his sister Clodagh described her elder brother as a "great son to be proud of for our parents, a fantastic brother, a super uncle but most of all," she said, "he was a fantastic friend." She reads the verse that Jason kept with him at all times. "Here's a little message, which is really just to say a thousand hugs and kisses, are dispatched, with love, your way. "It's also quite a good excuse, because you should be told, that truly special folks like you are worth their weight in gold. "So keep this message with you, and the feeling in your heart, that we'll be close forever, even when we're far apart. The funeral cortege was met at the gates of Wolfe Tones na Sionna and the coffin was shouldered by his 1986 team-mates to the burial at Illaumnmanagh. - courtesy of the Limerick Leader March 2002 Tweet

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