A community came out in force to pay their respects to a Darlington man who tragically passed away earlier this month.
St Cuthbert's Church in Darlington and surrounding streets were lined with mourners today (June 26) for the funeral service of Sheldon Kelly.
Friends and family turned out to pay tribute to the dad, 29, who died suddenly on June 4 and leaves behind his wife Lisa Marie, 28 and children Sheldon Jr, five, and Lorena, two.
Lining the streets were mourners dressed in blue as police directed the parade of vans carrying a swathe of floral tributes beside the church grounds which brought regular traffic to a standstill.
Many pictures of Sheldon with loved ones were decorated on the vehicles with one banner saying he will be "forever in our hearts".
Pedestrians making their way through town were quickly moved by the crowds and stopped to look at the scale of the funeral, taking pictures as the cars made their way inside.
A wave of people then entered the gates of the church, following the family as they were driven in, many shouting verbal goodbyes to Sheldon and marvelling at the arrangements as they were driven past.
Spread across at least a dozen vans which made their way to the church were heartfelt floral tributes reading “son”, “dad” and “husband”.
Pictures of Sheldon with friends and family were also adorned with flowers and carried along by decorated vans ahead of the service with handwritten messages reading Sheldon was “far too good for this world” and will “always be missed”.
A tribute left by Sheldon’s parents spoke of their “handsome boy” as they come to terms with this loss.
It read: “Sheldon, 29 years ago we brought you into the world and for that 29 years, you have been loved beyond words by me and your Dad, your sisters and brother.
“You always knew you were my special boy, and your sisters and brother, Wisdom, always knew that.
They always said ‘he's your golden boy’. You were always our blue eyed boy. It's a true saying my boy, there's no love like a mother's love and you knew that without me and your dad, you wouldn't have been here.
“God Bless our handsome boy. Hope we're with you soon, back in our arms.”
Many could not fit into the already packed church and stood outside to hear the service which was broadcast via a speaker, reminding loved ones of Sheldon’s “cheeky smile”, love for life and his family.
The speaker said: “Sheldon’s death is a shock – this means we didn’t get to say our goodbyes. We may not have parted in the way that we wanted.
“He was the apple of his mam and dad’s eye. A piece of them has gone with him.
“For all that he meant to us for the difference he made to so many, and for the memories we cherish today. We thank you for the gift of Sheldon.”
The procession then left the church just before 1pm followed by members of Sheldon’s family.
Lisa Marie, who was with Sheldon for 14 years, told The Northern Echo earlier this week that he “took a piece of her with him” when he passed.
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She said: “Sheldon was the best dad to our children and the best husband. Anything he did, he did for his family.
“He was such a caring, loving, person. The past few weeks have just been heartbreaking. He definitely took a piece of me with him.
“It’s not goodbye, it’s I’ll see you soon my best friend.”
The Northern Echo were invited to Sheldon's funeral with permission from his family.
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