A beautiful gesture.
The family of the late Vicky Phelan have invited the public to Kilkenny this Sunday for a celebration of her life with them.
The CervicalCheck campaigner sadly passed away from cervical cancer last Monday and was laid to rest on Thursday in a private ceremony.
Now, her family have asked members of the public to come to the parish church in her native Mooncoin, in Co Kilkenny on Sunday, November 27th for a celebration of life.
In a statement posted to the Vicky's Tribe Facebook page last night, the Phelan and Kelly family said that "goodbyes are never easy" when inviting everyone.
They wrote: "Stories were told and tears were shed, but we also shared a smile or two as we remembered the remarkable life of our wonderful Vicky.
"We would also like to take this opportunity to extend our heartfelt gratitude for all the good wishes from near & far over the last week. We too felt the nations' love and are forever grateful."
Wanting to give those who supported her an opportunity to pay their respects, they continued: "Vicky was a friend to many and was keen to ensure that all who wanted had the opportunity to join with us in a celebration of her life & pay their final respects. With this in mind, we invite you to her native Mooncoin, Co Kilkenny on Sunday, November 27th next at 1pm, where we will do our best to honour that wish.
"As numbers in the church itself are limited, there will be a live stream available on the day also, details of which will be posted later in the week along with further updates on the event itself. At this point it's fair to say that music will feature prominently, with some of her favourite musicians playing a few of her favourite tunes on the day."
The Limerick native was among the hundreds of women impacted by the CervicalCheck scandal. Vicky underwent a smear test in 2011, and was given the all-clear. However, in 2014, she was diagnosed with cervical cancer. It wasn't until 2017 that Vicky was informed that the initial test was incorrect.
Vicky sued Clinical Pathology Laboratories Inc, Austin, Texas for the incorrect result and the case settled for €2.5 million.
This article originally appeared on Her.ie.
Header image via Her.ie.
READ ON: It doesn't look like we'll be getting a white Christmas after all
