The funeral of a woman who was shot on Christmas Eve was a celebration of her life, a vicar said.
Elle Edwards, 26, died after being shot in the head by the front entrance of the Lighthouse pub, Wallasey Village, shortly before midnight on December 24. Elle was hit alongside four men, aged between 22 and 33, with the other victims all surviving their injuries.
The popular beautician, from New Brighton, was simply celebrating with her sister and friends, and detectives say she was not the intended target of the shooting.
READ MORE: Elle Edwards' nan will miss 'beautiful granddaughter' 'until we meet again'
At a service held at Wallasey's St Nicholas's Church today, Reverend Jeff Staples said there was "much in Elle's life that needs to be celebrated".
Mr Staples, who led the service, told the church: "It's not my place to add anything more to what has been said by Elle's family about Elle.
"So, what words do I add for our gathering today? Well I'm going to speak about two very important needs, the need for peace, and the need for hope. [Elle's dad] Tim mentioned in an interview about how he and Elle used to find great joy walking in the Lakes, so I hope Tim doesn't mind me mentioning that when he met me the other day here in St Nicholas the two of us spoke about finding peace.
"Tim said that he found peace when walking up to the top of a high hill and stopping to gaze out. He experienced stillness and calm, I think that is how many people seek peace, isn't it? To get out of the local hub-bub of life and just be in a place of calmness, of stillness, to be in the moment.
"Walking up high hills is not something I tend to do so I told Tim that when things are getting to me, when I'm feeling like the world is crushing me, I come to this house of prayer and I sit in the silence, in the stillness, and just be in the moment to find peace.
"Being at peace is important right now. It's always important, but it's particularly important right now. It's important because many of you, if not all, will be going through a whole range of emotions: sadness and grief, obviously, maybe anger, fear, anxiety, shock or bewilderment.
"I could go on but you know what I mean. We are emotionally in a kind of fuzz where nothing feels solid, nothing feels stable, we don't know whether to laugh or cry, to shout or be silent, so it's important we find stillness, calm, peace.
"And peace can be found no matter where we are. Listen to this again from our bible reading: "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."
Whether we are on top of a high hill, or in a church, or sitting off on the beach, that invitation to open ourselves up and allow God to minister to us is always there. And in those moments when we are closest to God we will experience the peace that God wants to bless us with. It's an inner peace that Jesus promises we can have. 'Come to me', says Jesus, 'come to me and I will give you rest'.
"We need that peace. And we need hope.
"May I also share something Elle's grandad George said the other day, and again I hope he doesn't mind. George said that we needed to leave this place today with hope in our hearts.
"How true is that? If we lose hope, then the darkness of evil has gained a victory. All of us have been touched by the darkness in these past weeks at one level or another, it is just as Tim said.
"What happened on Christmas Eve affected so many people, and it continues to do so, we were all touched by the darkness of evil. But the light of hope shines even in the deepest darkness, it shines in every kind word, in every embrace, in every good deed.
"There may not have been much said about it, but the light of hope shone on that dark night. The light of hope shone in the goodness of those who were able to act to try and save Elle. Elle was not abandoned in the darkness.
"The light of hope shone in the goodness of those who tended the wounded, who supported the fearful. It shone in those who offered words of comfort, who lit candles, who said prayers. And the light of hope will continue to shine every time somebody stands up and says 'this must stop'.
"I know Tim has said that he wants to work for good, to find ways to break this circle of violence that wants to destroy everything we hold dear. I pray that the good Tim wants to do bears great fruit, and this is the way of hope, the way of saying the darkness of evil will not extinguish the light of goodness.
"We need hope. And hope has a source, it is rooted in the goodness of God. And hope has a purpose, to enable people to live each day in anticipation of all that is good and right.
"Even in the midst of grief, of anger, of shock, of bewilderment, the light of hope will surface, and hope will sustain us even through the darkest days. If we abandon hope then we allow the dark deeds of others to ensnare us and hold us captive.
"George hit the nail on the head when he said 'we need to leave this place with hope in our hearts', and we must do that for ourselves, and for the communities we live in. Let us be people of hope.
"So allow me to invite you to open your hearts and let God bring you peace, and with that peace may the light of hope burn in us to sustain us and keep us and remain with us as we leave this place. May God bless us and make his face to shine upon us."
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