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'No animal is this barbaric'
22/06/2005 08:45 - (SA)
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| Baby Jordan Leigh Norton, stabbed to death in a Cape Town robbery, is laid to rest watched by her mom, Natasha. (Denzil Maregele, Die Burger) |
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Abigail Isaacs , Die Burger
Cape Town - Heart-wrenching scenes marked the memorial service at Our Lady Help of Christians Church in Lansdowne on Tuesday for Jordan Leigh Norton, the six-month-old baby who was cruelly stabbed to death in her home last week.
Natasha Norton, 22, Jordan's mother stared fixedly at the little white coffin while tears rolled down her cheeks.
When preparations were made to carry the coffin from the church, she stretched her hands towards it and started crying softly.
Norton was dressed in pink from head to toe.
Several mourners wore pink armbands in sympathy, while the rest of the Norton family all wore pink items.
Jordan's grandmother, Anastasia Norton, could not contain her emotions and had to delve for tissues to wipe away her tears.
Tears also flowed freely over the cheeks of Jordan's uncle, Dylan Norton, 18, who found her body last Wednesday after she was stabbed by alleged robbers.
In his tribute to Jordan, which was interrupted often when he lost control of his emotions, he said the pain they feel now can never compare to the joy Jordan brought to their lives.
"She had the most beautiful smile and those of you who saw it will know what I'm speaking of," he said.
He said the family was proud and blessed to have been part of her "very short life". He mentioned that pumpkin and potatoes were her favourite foods and that she loved fries even at such an early age.
Wiped away the tears
Dylan ended his eulogy by saying that it would take a lot of time and courage for them to accept that Jordon would not be with them ever again. Afterwards, he went to sit with his mother and the family formed a circle around him while he wiped away the tears.
Referring to the packed church, Father Hugh Boyle said the reason why so many people attended the service was because everyone knows that the way in which Jordan died was "disgusting and very wrong. Not even animals act so barbarically against their young," he said.
Jordan's biological father, Neil Wilson, also attended the memorial service. He did not join the Nortons who sat in the front of the church. When the coffin came out of the church and the Nortons were surrounded by friends and family, Wilson, supported by some friends, looked on from a distance.
Wilson is a teacher and rugby coach at Kirstenhof Primary School.
Jordan was cremated during a private ceremony.
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