The funeral mass for Antoine was one of the most beautiful ceremonies I have ever witnessed. Msgr Tugwell went above and beyond the call of duty. First of all, he began the service by acknowledging the presence of Antoine's granddaughter, Megan Willis. She was the only family member who was able to attend. It was clear right from the start that Msgr Tugwell had a special place for Antoine in his heart. He spoke of how touched he was when I told him about Antoine's last evening ... that after he had received the Sacraments: Anointing of the Sick, Penance and Extreme Unction (last rites), he became less agitated. Unlike the two previous evenings, he slept most of the night without calling out “mal” or “l'eau froide.” I know because I sat up with him and every time he cried out in pain, I jumped up to see what I could do to ease his suffering. When he finally passed away the next morning, it was so peaceful that all of us who were keeping a vigil didn't realize he had stopped breathing until Françoise, who had come to help with his care, took one look at him and said, “Judie, he's not breathing.” He died while Marie was at his bedside, holding his hand. I was sitting at the kitchen table with her husband and son and we didn't even realize he has slipped away, that's how gentle his passing was.
Another thing that struck me about the service, was how personable Monsignor was and how touchingly and convincingly he spoke of Antoine. He must have mentioned Antoine's name at least 50 times or more during the homily. Right from the beginning, he spoke so movingly about Antoine, there were tears in everyone's eyes and several times, I got really choked up, especially when he spoke about Antoine's convictions—a strong belief in the Catholic Church, a feeling of personal responsibility when it came to helping others in need and his sense of pride in all things French, from language to culture. Msgr Tugwell said that he wasn't going to speak about his academic and cultural accomplishments because we will have an opportunity to do that during the memorial service in September.
Instead of he spoke of Antoine and his involvement in the community. He called him an "Ambassador of Goodwill" and he spoke quite glowingly of his work with the Haitian community and how Antoine was instrumental in getting St. Thomas and Msgr Tugwell connected with a parish in Haiti, St. Elizabeth. He talked about the dinner Antoine organized just before he left for France and how successful it was in raising money for the Haiti Project. In addition, Msgr Tugwell talked about Antoine's participation as a Eucharist Minister and how everything he did and said was so very French, even his ministering.
While Msgr Tugwell was reminiscing about Antoine, he kept looking his picture. It was sitting above a beautiful bouquet of summer flowers that Françoise had picked from her garden that morning. During the service, Antoine's pastor explained why incense is used and what it represents -- it signifies the spirit rising up to heaven. Two of Antoine's dearest friends, Marlène and Pierre came from Jacksonville and Pensacola, respectively and they were invited to participate in the communion. They carried the offerings to the alter, a task that is normally reserved for members of the family. Then Pierre and Françoise were in charge of distributing the wine while Msgr handed out the host and offered his blessing to anyone who wished to take part in the offering.
Finally, I would like to congratulate Maurizio and Françoise, together with Ashley; they did a superb job of selecting the music for the occasion. They chose songs they knew that Antoine would have liked, especially the version of Ave Maria that was arranged by Charles Gounod. And a huge thank you to Keeffee and Stefan for providing the sandwiches, fruit plates and drinks on such short notice.
Knowing Antoine as I do, he would have been both humbled and gratified by all his friends, neighbors and colleagues who came together to pay their final respects.
