Family and Friends Say Goodbye to Michaela Smith

Family, friends and much of the Mansfield community came to pay their final respects to Michaela Smith on Friday morning at her funeral service at Saint Mary’s Church. Smith died Saturday after an early morning car crash in Foxborough.

“It is very very difficult to put into words of just how sorry our hearts are right now as we unite with you and your sorrow, and your loss,” Rev. Msgr. Stephen J. Avila said.

Many of her fellow students were teary eyed as they said their last farewells to their friend.

“In her first baptism, Michaela died with Christ and rose with him to new life,” said Rev. William Sylvia. “May He now share with her the cross of eternal glory.”

The service celebrated the life she shared with all of those close to her. She was remembered as a light to all those around her.

“She just wanted to be a part of everything that was going on with us, because surprisingly, she wanted to be just like us,” said her brother, Luke Smith. “I can still hear her now. ‘No ma, I can do it myself.’ A little girl jumping into such a big pool, with no swimmies. Standing on her tippietoes so she could meet the height requirement for the biggest roller coaster in the park. Making dad take the training wheels off her bike and bombing down the driveway like she had been doing it for years. She had no fear at all.”

Smith said he remembered Michaela as a fearless small girl who always wanted to be bigger, better and more grown up than she was.

“Independent was an understatement,” he said. “I’ll never forget when she wanted to get a job. She wanted to make her own money, so she decided she wanted to baby-sit. She went behind mom’s back to solicit neighbors for her new business, Michaela’s Babysitting.

“To live is the realest thing in the world,” he added. “Most people just exist, but Michaela really truly lived.”

Rev. Avila remarked that on Tuesday, during the candlelight vigil in Michaela’s honor, he and the school administrators were not sure if the service could go as planned, because of the high winds on the field right before the service.

“The wind was blowing pretty strong when we first got there,” he said. “Then, I don’t know if you know this, but at 6:30 the wind decided to die down, as if God was saying, go ahead, light the candles. And so we did. And as hundreds of you drew together, we of all faiths, of all backgrounds, of all ages; we all sat on that field as one body. As we passed that light of the candle, one to the other, that light spread, one candle at a time.”

“She was good at everything she tried,” said her sister, Danielle Smith. “She always had to be doing something, she had a never ending supply of energy… Her smile, her laugh, it really was like no other. Her sense of humor was one of a kind, she could bring light to any situation.

“Michaela is gone, but will never be forgotten. Her life was short, but she touched many throughout that time. Her memory will live on forever, please keep her in your hearts and don’t ever forget her.”