REAL emotion was etched on the faces of the hundreds of mourners who turned out on Friday to say farewell to Dr Leonie Geldenhuys.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Dr Geldenhuys died last week, the tragic central figure in a deteriorating domestic situation that came to a violent conclusion that no one had seen coming.
The death of the popular and talented GP set off a wave of public sympathy unprecedented in recent years.
Her young family together with her parents and other family members who had flown from South Africa led the mourners who packed Hoskins Uniting Church for the funeral service.
It was standing room only both inside and outside the church where Rev Matt Trounce led the service. With around 450 people packing the church the overflow also packed the adjacent Parish Centre where the service was relayed by video link.
Sharing the grief with the bereaved family were members of the medical fraternity, civic leaders, former patients of Dr Geldenhuys and many from across the community who had never met the doctor but who still felt a profound personal loss at a life cut short in such a way.
There were teachers and schoolmates of Dr Geldenhuys’s sons and university classmates of her daughter.
It was a reflection of the community grief that had emerged since Dr Geldenhuys’s murder last week, echoed by the floral tributes that had flooded the reception area of the Valley Medical Practice where she had had been so respected.
Dr Asaad Baraz in his eulogy touched on the outpouring of support and emotion that had been evident in recent days and he had discovered that at times like this Lithgow was really ‘just one big family’.
He referred to Dr Geldenhuys as a trusted and reliable colleague who took a genuine personal interest in her patients.
Dr Geldenhuys’s daughter, Janie, spoke of losing someone who was both a mother and a best friend. She was someone who ‘always gave,never asked for anything and never complained’.
She said her mother had loved Lithgow from the very start and enjoyed exploring the district at every opportunity.
Private cremation followed the service.
But that’s not the end of this sad story. A memorial service is to be held next week in South Africa.
Then once the police reports are complete there will be a formal inquest into the deaths of Dr Geldenhuys and the husband who is alleged to have killed her.
Only then will there be a finality of sorts.
