A Letterkenny woman’s lifelong love of dancing, right up to her final night, has inspired a moving musical tribute from her goddaughter.
Mrs Brigid Kelly, of Beechwood Avenue, was known far and wide for her love of music, dancing and good company.
Brigid died peacefully at home surrounded by her family on Thursday, 2nd July, just hours after enjoying one final night on the dancefloor in Bonagee.
Brighdin Carr has now released All of Heaven Sings in memory of her much-loved aunt and godmother.
The song is a comforting celebration of Brigid and a message of hope for her family.
Brighdin penned the lyrics in just 15 minutes on the night before her aunt’s funeral.
The first lyrics, she said, came to her while listening to memories shared at the wake.
“I reckon the song is the gift she gave me,” Brighdin said.
Brighdin had not told the Kelly family that she had written the hymn, meaning they heard it for the first time during Brigid’s funeral Mass in St Eunan’s Cathedral.
Brigid’s son, Kieran Kelly, said: “We heard the last couple of bars, which sounded like a little reel slowed down. That was when we thought, ‘That’s Mum.’”
It was only when the family later listened to the recorded version that the meaning of the song truly sank in.
“There were tears in our eyes all over again,” Kieran said.
“Even hearing the words about God giving her dancing shoes is emotional. We like to think Brighdin captured that she is happy now, back with Dad and dancing.”
The single cover of All of Heaven Sings, written and performed by Mrs Kelly’s Goddaughter Brí Carr
Brighdin later created a music video as a keepsake for the family, releasing it for what would have been Brigid’s 86th birthday on Sunday, 9th August.
“It’s gentle and hopeful,” she said. “It’s a case of it’s not the end, it’s the beginning.”
Brigid (née McDaid) was a devoted mother of six, grandmother of 15 and great-grandmother of four. She was predeceased by her husband, Hugh, and had lived in Beechwood Avenue.
She was a popular figure around Letterkenny, having worked in the tax office and volunteered with Letterkenny Credit Union in earlier years before she had her family.
Dancing was woven into the fabric of Brigid’s family life.
“Mum loved to dance,” Kieran said. “She taught each of us to do Shoe the Donkey when we were kids and she did the same with the grandkids.
“We grew up with dancing. When the Fleadh came to Letterkenny in 2005 and 2006, that was her heaven.”
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Brigid did not drink or frequent pubs, and dancing provided her with a treasured social outlet.
She also helped teach others alongside Patsy Blake at the GAA club and at gatherings in Convoy and Bonagee.
“She was many things to many people,” Kieran said. “She was a mother, grandmother, aunt and friend, but dancing was a huge part of who she was as a person.
“For us as a family, dancing was what defined her, and that is what the song captures.”
When dancing sometimes became more difficult in later years, Brigid continued going along for the company, conversation and craic.
She particularly enjoyed attending céilí and set dancing events with her daughter Cathy, who had become a close dancing companion.
On her final evening, Brigid travelled to Bonagee with her friend Patsy. She returned home full of stories about the people she had met, including friends she had not seen for some time.
A photograph taken at around 10pm shows Brigid happily chatting at a double birthday celebration. Little did anyone know that it would be the final photograph taken of her.
Mrs Kelly pictured with friends on her final night on the dancefloor, celebrating Mary O’Donnell’s 70th and Liam McMenamin’s 80th birthdays in Bonagee.
Brigid Kelly doing what she loved most, enjoying music, dancing and the company of friends in Bonagee.
“Knowing that her final night on Earth was spent dancing is almost poetic for us. It is beautiful and it gives us a quiet comfort,” Kieran said.
“While it is difficult to lose her, she wasn’t in pain. She did a little dancing, spent time chatting with her friends and had the craic. When she walked out, as she always did, she turned around, waved and said, ‘Bye now’. Then she went the next day.”
The music video for All of Heaven Sings brings more special memories together. The video has clips of signs from nature that Brigid’s family has noticed since her passing.
One particularly poignant scene shows a golden rose blooming in her son Paddy’s garden. The Golden Rose was Brigid’s favourite song.
All of Heaven Sings will also ensure that younger generations of the family continue to know the woman who inspired it.
Kieran added: “As a family, we are all very happy with the song. Everything is still raw for us, but something like this helps.
“Tears can be good when they are happy tears.”
The tribute song has been shared with Brigid’s extended family in Scotland and America and has also touched listeners far beyond the Kelly family.
“I am blown away by the beautiful messages and the response to the song,” Brighdin said. “I’m happy to realise that it resonates with so many.”
May Brigid rest in peace.
Listen to All of Heaven Sings by Brí Carr here: