Daniel Morcombe’s funeral at St Catherine’s Church, Sippy Downs. Brett Wortman THEY came from all walks of life, each with a splash of red and their own reason for being there.
Mothers with young children, mothers with their adult sons, men and women who had long ago raised their families, school children, workmen in uniforms, bikers in jeans, off-duty emergency service workers, local politicians, a former prime minister.
Most of them had never met Daniel Morcombe, but they all wanted to say goodbye.
Morning showers - Daniel's father, Bruce, once noted that it always rained on the anniversary of his son's disappearance - might have deterred some people and live television and radio coverage meant that many could tune in from home.
But for mother-of-three Christine Gattera, 39, of Woombye, there was no question about attending the funeral.
Ms Gattera has been to every Dance for Daniel fundraiser for the Morcombe Foundation as a way of supporting the Morcombes since Daniel's disappearance.
"Just the distress on Denise's face, you just knew it was bad the first day he went missing," she said.
Harley-Davidson owner Greg Sims, 54, who has been on every Ride for Daniel, rode in from Cecil Plains, west of Toowoomba.
Mother-of-five Rosemarie Van Eck, of Mudjimba, and Twin Waters couple Andrew and Keryn Carter, who have three young children, came because they always joined in the annual Day for Daniel and associated walk.
"I think we just want to show our support to the Morcombes. They do an amazing job," Mr Carter said.
Although it was not supposed to be a sad occasion, it was not long before the tears came.
Women were wiping their eyes by the time a pretty girl with a flower in her hair and an angel in her breath had barely made it to the second verse of Leonard Cohen's Hallellujah.
The tears flowed again when a montage of photos of Daniel, building sandcastles, blowing bubbles, always with beaming smile and sparkling eyes, flashed across the big screen.
The rituals of the Catholic service provided a respite from the emotion of the day, but when faces emerged from the chapel, they had red eyes, damp cheeks and quivering lips.
Grief does not follow rules, and even though it was nine years since Daniel's disappearance, the reality of his death was still a fresh wound for many of his friends and family.
Tineeka Green, 21, and her mother, Shelley, who travelled from Beachmere for the funeral, acknowledged that many people had always carried the faint hope that Daniel might have been found alive one day.
"It's not just the family that need closure. The community need closure, too," Tineeka said.
"They wanted to say goodbye."
As Daniel's white coffin was driven from Siena Catholic College, followed by his parents and other family members, for a private service and burial, they did just that.
The sea of red shirts and dresses had streamed across the grass to line the driveway and the school fence.
In a final show of respect, they clapped as the cortege drove away.
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