The Limerick teenager whose skeletal remains were recovered from a lake in Bodyke, Co Clare, two weeks ago was laid to rest yesterday.
In his homily at the funeral Mass of Richard "Happy" Kelly, Fr Pat Hogan called on the teenager's killers to "admit what they have done".
The parish priest said those responsible would find "that you are treated with far more forgiveness and kindness than you ever gave to Happy".
Hundreds of mourners gathered at the Holy Family parish church, Southill, Limerick, to pay their respects to the Kelly family who have waited 20 months to have a funeral for the teenager.
Floral tributes at the altar read: "Keep smiling", "Rest in peace, now you've come home", and "You will always be in our hearts". Mr Kelly's mother was praised for "waiting in hope and prayer, knowing that some day you would get him back". The congregation applauded Mary Kelly when Fr Hogan described her as a "tower of strength".
Mr Kelly was last seen driving a car through Daly's Cross on the outskirts of Limerick city on April 24th last year. Extensive searches by specialist Garda units and the Army of land surrounding Southill proved fruitless. The Kelly family even engaged the services of a psychic, Dennis McKenzie, to help solve the mystery of his disappearance.
While the information provided by Mr McKenzie aided the Garda investigation, it was by chance that the teenager's skeletal remains were finally discovered, snagged in a fisherman's net on November 28th at Lough Brigid near Bodyke.
Dental records and DNA provided by Ms Kelly positively identified the body. The 17-year-old's bubbly personality and smiling face were recalled at his funeral. "They say he lived up to his name." Fr Hogan said. "He was full of energy and good humour."
A red toy car representing the only car that Mr Kelly ever bought was brought to the altar. Fr Hogan joked that the teenager, who had stolen cars in the past, "had a big lock so that no one would take it".
The congregation fell silent when Fr Hogan remembered Mr Kelly's friends - "Andrew Mulrennan, who died at 20; Tony Hanley, who died at 17; and Jeffrey Hannan who died aged 19 . . .
"A third of the boys not offered secondary school places in Limerick four years ago under the schools common enrolment system are now tragically dead," he told the congregation. "Are we listening?"
Matthew Carroll, who has been missing from Southill since June 1999, was also remembered at the Mass. "Are there people among us who know what happened to Matthew?" Fr Hogan asked. "Do they not hear his mother's tears, knowing her only wish is to bury her son before she dies?" Richard "Happy" Kelly was buried in Mount Saint Oliver Cemetery.