Celine Dion waves after funeral services for Rene Angelil at Notre-Dame Basilica Friday, Jan. 22, 2016 in Montreal. Angelil died Jan. 14, in Las Vegas at the age of 73. AP
MONTREAL – A veiled, expressionless Celine Dion sat in silence at Montreal’s Notre-Dame Basilica on Friday as she, along with hundreds of her friends, family members and fans mourned the loss of her husband and longtime manager, Rene Angelil.
Angelil died Jan. 14, two days before his 74th birthday, after living with throat cancer for years.
She did not speak publicly at the funeral, instead leaving her and Angelil’s eldest son, Rene-Charles, to deliver a touching eulogy.
“Fifteen years is not a long time for a son to get to know his father. You had a busy life, but we were communicating through golf, hockey, poker and smoked meat,” Rene-Charles Angelil said, sharing a quick laugh with his mother who looked on from the front pew.
“You left me now with enough good memories to share with my younger brothers (Eddy and Nelson)… I’ll make sure to pass on what I learned from you,” he continued. “I love you, Dad.”
Dion and Rene-Charles had spent nearly seven hours the previous day greeting fans and mourners at a public visitation at the same church, just feet away from the open casket that contained Angelil’s body.
The couple had wed at the same church 21 years ago.
READ: Celine Dion’s brother dies 2 days after her husband
Retired National Hockey League coach Michel Bergeron, who once coached the Quebec City Nordiques and New York Rangers, was a close friend of Angelil’s.
“People ask me if I have memories. I have a thousand memories,” Bergeron said before entering the church. He said Friday marked the third occasion he had been to the Notre-Dame Basilica for a Dion-Angelil event: their 1994 wedding, the baptism of their eldest son Rene-Charles and finally, Angelil’s funeral.
He noted that Angelil, knowing he was terminally ill, had planned his funeral before dying. He joked he was anxious to see which pew seat Angelil assigned to him.
Countless Quebec celebrities and dignitaries noted Angelil’s generosity, among them former premier Jean Charest, current premier Philippe Couillard and the mayors of Montreal and Quebec City, Denis Coderre and Regis Labeaume.
Nearly 700 members of the public also attended Friday’s funeral. They began gathering outside the basilica as early as 6 a.m. to ensure they got a seat.
Clutching her copy of Paris Match magazine featuring a cover story on Dion and Angelil, Andrea Marier said the couple’s story–in which Angelil plucked Dion, then a teen from Charlemagne, Que., from obscurity and turned her into an international musical superstar–was an inspiration to thousands of fans.
“The grand and beautiful history of their love,” Marier said.
Angelil’s casket was later taken to Montreal’s Notre-Dame-des-Neiges cemetery for a private graveside ceremony.
READ: Celine Dion’s husband, manager Rene Angelil dies