Brianna Ghey funeral: Friends and family pay tribute to ‘prettiest, most perfect girl’
A horse-drawn carriage arrives carrying Brianna Ghey’s coffin. (Oli Scarff/AFP)
Brianna Ghey, the trans girl stabbed dead in a Warrington park in February, has been laid to rest following a moving funeral service.
The 16-year-old was fatally stabbed in Culcheth Linear Park, in Warrington, last month, and her death rocked the LGBTQ+ community.
Tributes were paid during an emotional service at St Elphin’s Parish Church, led by Reverend Debbie Lovatt.
The church organ played a rendition of “I Dreamed a Dream” from Les Misérables as Ghey’s family and friends – dressed in pink to honour the teenager – arrived.
The pink coffin arrived on a horse-drawn carriage to a sombre crowd of mourners, many of them strangers who went to pay their respects, and was carried into the church to the sound of Lana Del Rey’s “Video Games”.
Brianna Ghey’s grandmother pledged that she would be in her heart for ever, The Liverpool Echo reported.
“You can be whoever you want and will be accepted with love and celebration,” she said.
Ghey’s friends described the her as the “prettiest, most perfect girl” and recalled how loved she was.
A letter from the teen’s school, Birchwood Community High, was read out.
“We will miss her wit and her humour. We will even miss her insults and her putting us all in our place, as she so loved to do,” they said.
“We are so glad Brianna came to join us at Birchwood. We are so glad that she was part of our school community as we learnt so much from her.
“We learned so much about strength and determination to be one’s true self. And that is something that we all carry with us.
“She was a true one-off, unique and truly unforgettable. What a privilege it was to know her.”
The funeral service was relayed on speakers so the crowds gathered outside could also hear the tributes.
Prior to Brianna Ghey’s funeral, tributes were paid to Brianna Ghey by local figures, LGBTQ+ activists and support groups.
Warrington North MP Charlotte Nichols said in a statement: “I’m sending all my love to her family, friends and classmates on this difficult day, and hope this opportunity to remember Brianna together will help ease the passage of grief for all those who loved her. May her memory for ever be a blessing.
“Brianna’s mum is raising money for the Mindfulness in Schools Project to train a member of staff in as many Warrington schools as possible in mindful practices so her legacy is one of supporting young people across the town.”
Anti-abuse charity, Galop, wrote on Twitter. “Our national LGBT+ abuse and violence helpline is here to offer emotional support.”
A boy and a girl, both 15, who cannot be named for legal reasons, have been charged with Brianna Ghey’s murder. They are due to go on trial at Liverpool Crown Court on 10 July.
