![[EN IMAGES] Moving funeral for Norah and Romy](https://i0.wp.com/www.world-today-news.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/bf797c50-cab6-11ea-b765-23ebf282cf20_ORIGINAL.jpg?fit=1200%2C492&ssl=1 "[EN IMAGES] Moving funeral for Norah and Romy")
Nine days after the unthinkable happened, relatives, friends and citizens gathered in Lévis to celebrate the short life of Romy Carpentier, 6, and her sister Norah Carpentier, 11, on Monday.
• Read also: “I’m not worried” – the mayor of Saint-Apollinaire
• Read also: Martin Carpentier knows “he is a hunted beast”
• Read also: The director of Deuil-Jeunesse and Mélissa Bédard will celebrate the funeral
After welcoming the condolences of relatives and the public all day long, the family of the two little girls recollects in the privacy of the chapel of the Claude Marcoux complex, where the funeral of the young victims began at 4 p.m.
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The funeral is expected to last around 45 minutes and allow relatives to speak, after which a symbolic flight of doves is scheduled.
The late girls have been described as children breathing the joy of life, curious, sneering, energetic, loving, emphatic, who made a deep impression on everyone they met.
“Norah, our ingenious artist. Romy, our greedy buffoon. You will be missed. Your departure was so sudden. We would have loved to see you grow up, ”said Anika, aunt of the two girls.
The grief that afflicts the mother of the little ones, and her entourage, is also felt outside the building, where a giant screen has been set up to allow the general population to follow the ceremony. At least a hundred people are on site.
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Difficult
“These are emotions that are difficult to name [pour la famille]. It’s a very, very painful day for them today. It is a day that they did not wish, that they would have done everything not to live, ”declared a little earlier in the afternoon Josée Masson, executive director of the organization Deuil-Jeunesse, who is the celebrant.
She said she wanted to focus on “the joy of living of these children” and “love”.
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- Listen to the report by TVA News reporter Kariane Bourassa with Caroline St-Hilaire at QUB Radio:
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Mme Masson confirmed that the family had been greatly touched by the outpouring of solidarity and support it received from the Quebec population.
“They expressed their gratitude to me, clearly. They received from Quebec, but also from beyond, it went much further than that, messages, many offers of help and support. They have all the gratitude in the world for the people who did it, ”says Josée Masson.
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The activity takes place in a particular context in several respects. Pandemic requires, we must wear the mask and respect social distancing.
But above all, we are still without news of the main suspect in the death of the girls, their 44-year-old father and ex-wife of the bereaved mother, Martin Carpentier, and the police are still struggling to explain the last moments of Norah and her life. Romy, despite nearly two weeks of investigation and intense research.
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Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu, touched
Senator Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu, who himself lost his daughter, murdered in June 2002, also wanted to be present. Upset by the events that reminded him of his own grief, he saluted the memory of the two sisters and assured his support for the family.
“To be with them is to say: ‘I went through the same thing as you. We have a language of the heart which is similar ”. It is to say: “yes, we can get by”. We have to get out of it by making sense of this event, it’s difficult, but it’s the only way to get out of it, “said Mr. Boisvenu, emphasizing hope, who even s ‘he may look thin today, is still there.
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“What remains after a drama like this, if not to find your dreams, to regain your zest for life?” What we stole from this family is the future of their children, ”he said.
Saddened citizens
Carpentier and his daughters disappeared following a mysterious accident on Highway 20 involving the man’s vehicle on the evening of July 8. The life of Amélie Lemieux, ex-spouse of the suspect, changed completely three days later, when the unfortunate discovery, by police officers and volunteers, of the bodies of young girls in a wooded area of Saint-Apollinaire.
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This afternoon, many friends and colleagues began to parade in front of the family inside the funeral complex to offer their sympathies to the relatives of the two Carpentier sisters.
Among them, the president of the 128e Charny’s scout group, who knew the two children well. Terrified, François Samson still struggles to find the words to describe the horrible drama.
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“The worst part is that it’s not over. We don’t have answers, we don’t know anything. We go from surprise to surprise like everyone else, ”said Mr. Samson, his voice trembling.
He and the members of his Scout teams try to explain to Norah and Romy’s sad fate to the children, but it is not easy. “People have no words. Everyone is followed, especially the children. My job is to protect them and that we get through, but it is not easy, “adds the manager who was around the two girls.
Many children also paraded to pay tribute to the two little ones. Obviously, Norah and Romy did not miss friends during their too short existence.
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“It was important to pay tribute to them one last time,” said a mother, who had to explain what had happened to Norah, the great friend of her oldest daughter. “It’s hard to explain, to find the words.”
“Awful”
A little further in the long line of people who came to support the family, the uncle of Amélie Lemieux’s current spouse, the mother of the two little ones, had traveled to the Rimouski region to accompany the family.
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“I find it quite awful,” says Clermont Pelletier, who wants the family to put an end to their nightmare with the possible discovery of Martin Carpentier, still at large. “I hope they will take it, because it is quite sad what the family is going through.”
Even people who had no connection with the girls wanted to be there to support this family. “It shocked us so much, which happened. We don’t know them intimately, but you had to be here to wish them the best to come. We wanted to be here to wish them luck, ”said Gilles, a passer-by.
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Family-friendly morning
The two girls’ immediate family arrived at the funeral home shortly after 8:30 a.m. In the minutes that followed, family members and relatives began to come in to support the family in this difficult ordeal.
The mayor of Lévis, Gilles Lehouillier, and Senator Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu notably came to meditate with the bereaved relatives.
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“Are we really preparing for this?” I would tell you that to console the inconsolable, I am not sure that it is really done ”, underlined Mme Masson. “I very much hope to bring hope because these people do not want to be there today.”
Photo Stevens Leblanc
Josée Masson
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Police presence
Obviously, Martin Carpentier’s hunt remains in the background of this difficult day, despite the family’s pain. As the father of the girls has still not been found after being on the run for more than a week, a continuous police presence will be observed around the Claude Marcoux funeral complex.
- Listen to Josée Masson’s interview on QUB radio:
Early in the morning, officers from the Lévis Police Service circulated around the funeral home and patrol officers were installed nearby to ensure order.
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