Hundreds Mourn Schiavo at Mass in Florida

GULFPORT, Fla. (Reuters) - Terri Schiavo, the brain-damaged Florida woman whose fate sparked a bitter and highly politicized family feud, was sent by God to deliver a message about life's meaning, a priest said at a funeral Mass organized by her parents on Tuesday.

"God sends us people like Terri to remind us of the meaning of life," Father Frank Pavone, director of an anti-abortion [pro-life] group called Priests for Life, said in a homily.

I heard there were about 700 people in attendance - the church was overflowing - it holds about 600 people.

Also something missing in these stories was that an emotional Bobby Schindler, Terri's brother, received and held up a Purple Heart which was sent to the family for Terri - I did not hear who sent them the medal.

The Reuter's story is here. The Post Dispatch has an article here.