A young couple killed in the Manchester bombing in May were “inseparable in life, inseparable in death”, the vicar leading their joint funeral service said.
Mourners were asked to wear pink or blue for the service for Liam Curry, 19, and Chloe Rutherford, 17, at St Hilda’s church in their home town of South Shields, South Tyneside, on Thursday.
The teenagers were among the 22 people killed in the suicide bomb attack at an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena in May.
The funerals for 18-year-old Georgina Callander, from Tarleton, in Lancashire, and 28-year-old John Atkinson, from Radcliffe in Bury, were also held on Thursday.
Addressing hundreds of mourners who packed St Hilda’s church and the street outside, the Rev Fr Chris Fuller said: “Chloe and Liam were, and still are, an image of love. Inseparable in life, inseparable in death, inseparable now with the angels of heaven.”
He said that after the death of Curry’s father this year “Liam was there to provide strength and comfort for his mum and family, assuming a new role”.
He added: “He was the man of the house, there to protect and take care of everyone. That was a mantle he carried with immense dignity and great courage. She was his rock. Their love for each other was just getting stronger.”
The service was told that the couple had planned to get married and have children. Chloe was studying music at college and was about to start an apprenticeship at a travel agency. Liam was studying for a degree in sport and exercise science at Northumbria University and had ambitions to join the police.
“The rest we know,” said Fuller. “Too tragic, too sad, and here we are now, when we wish we weren’t. How to make sense of something that’s never, ever going to make sense?”
In Bury, scores of people gathered outside St Thomas and St John church for Atkinson’s funeral. His eulogy told how, as a support worker, he worked with stroke victims and people with autism. He had loved live music and would think nothing of queuing for hours to buy tickets for a concert. “But the greatest love and passion of John’s life was his family,” the eulogy read. “He was caring and thoughtful. He never left anyone out.”
The streets of Tarleton, Lancashire, were decorated with pink and yellow ribbons for Callander’s funeral. Shops in the town were closed as a mark of respect.
The annual Manchester Day parade this year will focus on paying tribute to the victims of the attack. It will be led by 22 young people each holding a balloon representing those who lost their lives, and a banner reading Manchester Remembers. The parade begins at 1pm on Sunday.
