Grieving dad touches coffin at funeral of his three children found dead in house

The grieving dad of three young children found dead at home in Dublin touched their coffin as it was brought out for their funeral.

The bodies of Conor, nine, Darragh, seven, and Carla McGinley, three, were discovered on Friday.

The children's mother, Deirdre Morley, 43, from Newcastle, has been charged with their murders.

A Mass of the Angels is being held for the siblings at the Church of The Holy Family, Rathcoole, followed by burial in Newcastle Cemetery today.

Mourners at the service have heard about the "shroud of darkness" that has fallen upon the community.

Fighting back tears, their father Andrew McGinley said in a devastating eulogy that he now knows what the word 'heartbroken' really means.

He also thanked everyone involved in Frozen, the fantasy film which had entertained his children, while mentioning Ironman, Thor, Captain Marvel and Hulk for bringing joy and imagination into his kids' lives.

Mr McGinley addressed mourners as he paid tribute to his darling children, the Irish Mirror reports.

He said: "I will finish with this. We often misuse words.

"When Ireland would lose a match, I used to say I was heartbroken. I now know what that really means. We, as a family, are heartbroken.

"It will only be with your help, support and friendship that we will be able to patch our hearts together in some way but we will still be forever heartbroken.

"Conor, Darragh and Carla. I love you, I love you, I love you."

Mr McGinley said: "Special thanks to princesses Ana and Elsa and also to a snowman called Olaf from our princess Carla.

"Carla my love, I had really hoped that we would be finally building that snowman this year. I'm so sorry.

"Thank you to whoever invented trampolines. You will never know the fun and enjoyment ours has brought Conor, Darragh and Carla."

The dad paid thanks to many of his children's favourite characters, which brought so much joy and excitement into their lives.

He said: "Thank you Lego. If you saw Conor and Darragh’s bedroom you would know how much they adored Lego.

"What I need you all in Lego to understand is that you gave me precious time with my children to create not just the items in the instructions but also many weird and wonderful spaceships, many totally impractical multi purpose vehicles and lots and lots of baddies lairs.

"You gave them creativity but most of all you gave us joy together as a family. Please understand that and please continue to bring as much joy as you can to the children of the world.

"Thank you Stan Lee, R.I.P. Thank you for your stories and characters. You fueled our children’s imaginations. 

"This brings me on to everyone in Marvel. Thank you for Ironman, Thor, Captain Marvel, Hulk and all the rest. Thank you Robert Downey Jnr and thank you Chris Hemsworth for bringing Ironman and Thor to life. My kids absolutely worshipped you both. To Mark Ruffalo, Carla loved big friendly Hulk in Avengers Endgame and thanks for your bits of that film that I was able to show her."

He added: "So please understand the way your acting profession breeds children’s creativity and imagination and how you also bring them awe and wonder.

"Because of your films that they loved, and could almost recite line by line, Conor had taken up drama class and he had recently been joined by Darragh there."

Fr Kevin Doherty told mourners: "Their very going from us has left a chasm of absence in our lives.

"It is like a pall of darkness, a shroud of darkness, has come down upon us, and no-one is left untouched.

"This darkness has come into our communities, in Newcastle and in Rathcoole.

"It has come to our schools, where children are confused and fragile and questioning ... and our wonderful teachers are speaking, out of their own sadness, gentle love to these children."

Their father Andrew is set to give the eulogy at the private service.

He previously spoke of his devastation and grief at their deaths.

He said Conor, Darragh and Carla all had "beautiful, bright futures" ahead of them.

In a statement issued through gardai, Mr McGinley said: "There are no words. There is only devastation, grief and anguish. Every breath is a struggle.

"Conor, Darragh and Carla are adored.

"They all had beautiful, bright futures ahead of them with family, friends and a community who love them.

"To all parents, cuddle your children whenever you get a chance. Tell them how much you love them as often as you can, spend every spare minute with them reading, playing and enjoying their wonderfulness.

"The future has now become our enemy but we will battle it every day to keep the memory of Conor, Darragh and Carla alive."

Over the weekend Father Kevin Doherty, co-parish priest at St Finian’s Church, near the family home, spoke of the grief being experienced by the community.

“The darkness is so dark," he said, according to the Irish Times.

"It’s unspeakable. Grief, heartbreak, loss – it affects and touches every body in this community and I saw all the parents here.

"We had a Communion preparation Mass today and the parents coming – you could see the grief in their hearts as well.”

A funeral notice described them as "cherished children" who are "sorrowfully missed by everyone".

• The children's mother, Deirdre Morley, 43, from Newcastle, has been charged with their murders. She appeared before Dublin District Court at the Criminal Courts of Justice on Wednesday evening and was remanded in custody until next Wednesday.