JOIN USBand member Ronan Keating broke down in tears while he gave his speech at the poignant ceremony held at the St LaurenceO’Toole’s Church in Dublin, Ireland.
Keating and the other members of Boyzone, Shane Lynch, Mikey Graham and Keith Duffy, fought through their grief to perform the track ‘In This Life’ at the service.
“We have lost our brother and I have lost my wingman. He will live on in the songs and whenever we four are together his spirit is alive. So, for Stephen, we’re going to carry on but it will never be the same without him,” said Keating.
“He was so excited at the prospect of the new Boyzone studio album and he called me on Friday after receiving a bunch of new songs, saying how much he loved them,” added Keating, who also vowed to finish Gately’s book The Tree Of Seasons, a children’s fantasy novel.
“He was putting the finishing touches to his first book The Tree Of Seasons. There are only a few pages left to do and by hook or by crook, those who loved him, and there are so many in this room, are going to finish his book,” Keating said.
Besides greiving for his late friend, Keating also made the congregation laugh with anecdotes about Gately.
“Steo loved to laugh and how we laughed! He had nicknames for all us — Keith was Kitty, Shane was Shanise, Mikey was Michaela, I was Rosalyn and he was Stephanie,” he said.
Duffy also made a speech about Gately, addressing the late star’s husband Andy Cowles and his parents, Martin and Margaret.
Gately was found dead at his Majorcan home on October 10.