Kennedy Family Gathers For Saoirse Kennedy Hill Funeral In Centerville
CENTERVILLE (CBS/AP) – The Kennedy family and friends from college gathered on Cape Cod Monday for the funeral for Saoirse Kennedy Hill, the 22-year-old granddaughter of the late Robert F. Kennedy.
Hill died Thursday after police responded to a call about a possible drug overdose at the Kennedy compound in Hyannis Port.
Her funeral mass was held at Our Lady of Victory Church in Centerville, followed by a private burial.
Ted Kennedy Jr., former Congressman Joe Kennedy Jr., and Rep. Joe Kennedy lll all served as pallbearers for the mass.
Her grandmother, 91-year-old Ethel Kennedy, was also at the funeral.
"When I see Ethel in church every morning and has always kept her faith. I have to admire her and the rest of them," neighbor Phyllis Dunn said. "I think they've had a lot of tragedy."
The Mass was closed to the media, but according to the bulletin, it included words to a song called "When Saoirse's Eyes Are Smiling" to be sung at the conclusion of the service, to the tune of "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling."
"She was a gorgeous girl. She had everything to live for. It's unfortunate," said neighbor Eleanor McDonough.
The Cape & Islands District Attorney's Office said Hill died after being taken to Cape Cod Hospital. An autopsy revealed no signs of trauma and investigators are awaiting toxicology reports.
Hill was about to be a senior at Boston College. She was the daughter of Robert and Ethel Kennedy's fifth child, Courtney, and Paul Michael Hill.
The Kennedy family in a statement released by a spokesman last week remembered Hill for her social activism, her passion about human rights and women's empowerment and her work with indigenous communities to build schools in Mexico.
(© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)