Tears for their teenage friend

THE playing fields which back onto the River Faughan in Drumahoe were deserted on Thursday and Friday as young people came to terms with the death of their friend, 15-year-old Kyle Bonnes, or 'Bown' as his closest friends referred to him.

The teenage boy had drowned in the river on Wednesday afternoon, and since that time young people had hung about the area in small clutches, with stunned, vacant faces. Some were unable to prevent tears from falling, others looked like they had not slept.

A likeable kid, with a ready wit and seemingly boundless energy, who was football-mad and a dedicated fan of Rangers FC, by all accounts Kyle and his friends had practically lived on the playing fields when weather permitted. Now the fields stood empty. None of the young people of Drumahoe or Tullyally had any heart for a kick-about with a ball.

On the riverbank on Friday a small patch of stones close to where Kyle had been pulled from the water by the Foyle Search and Rescue team was decorated with flowers and personalised tributes. In the centre was Kyle's baseball cap. It was a piece of his personal uniform and one of the few tangible belongings his young friends had left at their disposal to try and tell the adults around them about the loss that they felt and how much they felt their friend's absence.

On the stone bridge overlooking the picturesque scene someone had erected a Rangers flag, while a football shirt had been nailed to a nearby tree. It bore the legend 'BONNES 1 RIP'.

On Friday in the river just a few feet from where the tragedy unfolded, a blue and white football was trapped in branches at the stone arch of the bridge, while further down the river on the left-hand-side, another ball, red this time, could just be seen. The Sentinel has since learned that the red ball had been thrown into the river by a mother accompanied by a distraught young person, as a tribute to football-loving Kyle. It is tempting to assume that the blue and white ball is also a tribute. Like the young people who ebbed and flowed to and from the scene all day like flotsam, you could be forgiven for thinking the footballs, like the mourning yongsters, could not tear themselves away from the area.Scarves and more t-shirts and football paraphenalia were added throughout the day.

Vigil

A group of Kyle's closest friends kept vigil at the spot until 5am on Friday, and adults, concerned at their welfare sent down a box of goodies, followed later by warm food and blankets. Dividing out the the spoils, the young folk did not forget their friend, leaving Kyle a bag of Milky Way Magic Stars.

At 3.30pm on Friday the group of young people started to swell on the riverbank as they came together to say a collective goodbye to their friend by floating tiny yellow rubber ducks down the Faughan. Attached to the ducks were messages for Kyle, some calling him a legend, others taking the opportunity to write longer, more personal notes. Close to 4pm the ducks were released into the waterway, and a group of upwards of 60 young people comforted each other as their messages floated away from them. One young girl clutched her duck, unable to put it in the water. Instead, after hovering near the floral tributes on the riverbank, she placed it under Kyle's cap.

Many of the young people chose to wear football shirts with messages to Kyle on the reverse. Many of the shirts were printed in the Celtic Shop, the staff at which were, apparently, touched that the young people had felt comfortable in asking them to undertake the printing, doing so at a reduced cost.

Later that evening the young people formed a guard of honour in their shirts as the remains of Kyle Bonnes were brought home. As the hearse passed there was spontaneous applause and amid the flowers and bright football colours there were tears.

The young people have dedicated a Bebo site to Kyle's memory. It contains poetry, photographs and memories as well as tributes to a teenage boy whose outgoing personality has had a major impact on his peer group.

A poignant funeral service took place to Glendermott Presbyterian Church on Sunday at 2pm, which was followed by burial at Ballyoan Cemetery.

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