Up to 500 mourners have attended the funeral service of teenager Jay Slater “who touched the lives of so many people”.
Family and friends packed into the chapel at Accrington Crematorium to pay their respects to the 19-year-old from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, who died while on holiday in Tenerife.
Many others watched in the drizzle outside as the proceedings were relayed on a specially erected big screen.
At the wishes of his family, most wore the colour blue in his memory including his work colleagues from PH Build Group, where he was an apprentice bricklayer, who wore T-shirts with ‘Forever 19’ on the front.
Funeral director Sarah Barton officiated at the service and told the congregation: “We know that Jay touched the lives of so many people, and on behalf of the family I would like to thank all those who have sent heartfelt messages and cards to them to help them get through this incredibly hard and sad time.
“I would also like to thank all those who have helped bring Jay safely back to us, family, friends, the kind offers from people in Tenerife, the police here back home and all of you for coming here today to show your love and care.”
A post-mortem examination found the teenager died on June 17th of traumatic head injuries, consistent with a fall from height. His death would have been instantaneous.
Mr Slater attended the NRG music festival with two friends before his disappearance, and his last known location was the Rural de Teno Park in the north of the Canary Island, which was about an 11-hour walk from his accommodation.
He had travelled to an Airbnb in Masca after a night out but the two men said to have rented the property were later ruled “not relevant” to the case.
The Spanish Civil Guard said Mr Slater could have fallen in the steep and inaccessible area where he was discovered.
Jay’s mother, Debbie Duncan, father Warren Slater, and elder brother, Zak, listened on as memories of Jay’s junior footballing exploits at Huncoat United, where he played from aged six to 17, and his days at West End Primary School and Rhyddings High School were shared.
In a tribute read out to the service, Huncoat United manager Stuart Holt said: “I met first Jay when he was six-years-old when Debbie brought him to his first football coaching session.
“He already looked the part with his baggy kit and his flowing locks. Jay was quiet, shy and, as it turned out, a natural footballer.
“I cannot remember a single incident in those 10 seasons where he fell out with a teammate or an opponent. He would just turn up – usually at the last minute because he liked his sleep – and always played with a smile on his face and was just happy with the ball at his feet.
“You wouldn’t find a team-mate with a bad word to say about Jay. Just respect and affection.”
Mrs Barton said Jay made “solid and loyal” friendships throughout his time at West End Primary and Rhyddings High.
She said: “There are simply too many friends to mention. You only need to look inside here and outside to realise the depth of the amount of friends Jay had, whether they be on Snapchat, Insta or whatever.
“After leaving school, Jay would secure himself a one-week job trial in the summer with the PH Build Group who then kept him on and changed into a permanent contract.
“This led to him starting a three-year apprenticeship at Accrington and Rossendale College, where he would would have been doing his final assessments in July.”
At weekends Jay “loved to party”, she said, adding: “He worked hard and played hard. We know he loved his music and dance, with this starting from a very early age.
“As soon as he was old enough, Jay enjoyed going to festivals and had been to a fair few in his time – Parklife, Creamfields, Leeds Festival, the Warehouse Project.”
Video clips of Jay’s “dance moves” were shown at the service, as well as photo tributes.
Mourners were handed cards with a photograph of the teenager and the words ‘Remembering with Love, Jay Dean Slater, Always In Our Hearts, #forever 19’.
On the back it said: “If there was anyone dancing on the way to the other side it was him.”
