Heartwarming images have been displayed at a funeral service for a Home and Away star’s parents and sister, who were killed in a horror crash that left the young actress fighting for life.
Loved ones of the Falkholt family gathered in Sydney’s inner-west on Wednesday to farewell Lars, Vivian and Annabelle, who died in the Boxing Day tragedy.
Jessica, who found fame on the small screen in the long-running TV soap, remains in a critical condition – unaware she is the sole survivor of the crash.
One photo shared with mourners at Wednesday’s service shows Jessica gazing adoringly at her younger sister shortly after she was born.
The picture galleries reveal the pair throughout their childhood and teenage years, while others show them posing for more recent selfies.
Scroll down for video
Heartwarming images have been displayed at a funeral service for a Home and Away star’s parents and sister, showing the family throughout the years
Loved ones of the Falkholt family gathered in Sydney’s inner-west on Wednesday to farewell Lars, Vivian and Annabelle, who died in the Boxing Day tragedy. Mr and Mrs Falkholt are seen on their wedding day
Mr and Mrs Falkholt are seen on their wedding day, and Annabelle is pictured in her school uniform.
Other portraits show the family posing for photos when the siblings were children, and another shows Mr Falkholt enjoying a beer as a young man.
‘The family wish to express their deep appreciation and sincerely thank you for your kind expressions of sympathy,’ a funeral notice written to mourners read.
Three caskets were carried into St Mary’s Catholic Church in Concord on Wednesday morning as hundreds of mourners made their way into the service.
Jessica (pictured bottom right), who found fame on the small screen in the long-running TV soap, remains in a critical condition – unaware she is the sole survivor of the crash
Other portraits show the family posing for photos when the siblings were children
A heartwarming photo shared with mourners at Wednesday’s service show Jessica gazing adoringly at her younger sister shortly after she was born (bottom right)
The deceased trio has been described as the ‘dearly loved and cherished father, mother and sister to Jessica’, in a funeral notice published by Fairfax Media.
‘Lars, Vivian and Annabelle will be deeply missed by Vivian’s brother Paul Ponticello, his children Paul and Natalie, along with many relatives and friends both near and far,’ the notice read.
‘In Sweden, Lars leaves behind his brothers, sister and extended family.’
Lars and Vivian Falkholt were killed when their car collided with a four-wheel drive on the NSW south coast on December 26.
The parents and younger sister of Home and Away star Jessica Falkholt are being laid to rest at St Mary’s Catholic Church in Sydney
Another of the coffins, topped with white lilies, is wheeled inside the church
Lars, 69, and Vivian Falkholt, 60, (L) were killed instantly in the head-on accident on the NSW South Coast, while their daughter Annabelle, 21, (2nd from right) died in hospital days later
Their daughters, Annabelle, 21, and Jessica, 29, were pulled from the wreckage of the car before it erupted in flames.
Annabelle was flown to Liverpool Hospital in a critical condition but died three days later. Jessica continues to cling to life in Liverpool Hospital.
Jessica and Anabelle’s uncle Paul Bonticello told a packed funeral service at the church in Sydney’s inner-west that Christmas would forever haunt their family.
‘It is a day that will be difficult to erase from our memory,’ he said.
‘Their lives on this earth ending on a highway makes absolutely no sense.’
Mr Ponticello also thanked the ‘saviours’ who risked their lives to pull Annabelle and Jessica from the inferno.
Their actress daughter Jessica, 28, continues to cling to life in Liverpool Hospital with no idea her family member are dead
Jessica (pictured) remains in a critical condition in St George Hospital more than two weeks after the crash, a hospital spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday
Three hearses arrived at the church on Wednesday morning carrying the family’s coffins
The orders of service featured the tragic last family photo of them together
One of the coffins is seen being brought inside before the funeral began on Wednesday morning
The hearses, one white and two black, parked outside the church before mourners lifted them out and wheeled them inside.
Two of the coffins were a stained brown wood topped with white lilies, while the other was all white with colourful casket spray.
Family members of Lars and Vivian flew from Sweden and Italy for the service, which was expected to also be attended by Jessica’s former cast mates.
Lars’ family will also hold a service in Sweden later today.
Mourners were seen outside the church lining up for orders of service, featuring the tragic last family photo of them together, set up on a table outside.
Mourners stream into the church, collecting orders of service from a table set up out the front
Mourners stop to talk as they stand in line outside the church with the funeral soon to begin
Friends and family of the family arrive for the funeral wearing solid black dresses
Many friends and family dressed in all black, including young children, embraced as they prepared to go inside for the service.
Jessica remains in a critical condition in the Intensive Care Unit at St George Hospital a hospital spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday.
The heartbroken family of the actress has kept a bedside vigil since the accident and have been told by surgeons her recovery was now ‘a waiting game’.
‘We’re not going to know much about Jessica’s real condition for a while,’ a relative told Daily Mail Australia.
The Catholic funeral began with a hymn followed by prayers for the departed family
Friends and family gave prepared speeches and led mourners in prayer
The service included Bible readings and well-known hymns
A small child hugs another mourner as attendees begin to enter the church
Mourners hold hands as they walk towards the entrance to the church on Wednesday morning
A cluster of mourners congregate outside and embrace as they prepare to enter the church
‘The neurosurgeon came in and he just said the operation went well and it’s just a waiting game.
‘She could be in a coma for weeks or even months, she still has all the swelling on her brain.
‘They haven’t even been able to test her brain yet. They’ll probably have to wait a week or two now and see how she responds to the surgery.’
Damage to the left side of the brain can potentially impact personality and memory.
Her relatives admitted they were grappling with how to explain she was the sole survivor of the horror smash.
Two mourners study the order of service before they enter the church for the funeral
Hundreds attended the service and had to queue up to get their orders of service on the way in
A priest seen outside the church as mourners stream inside before the funeral
Mourners shed tears as they embrace outside St Mary’s Catholic Church where the trio will be given their send-off
Orders of service include the tragic final family photo of the mother, father and daughter
Craig Anthony Whitall, 50, a serial driving offender who was behind the wheel of the other vehicle, was also killed in the crash.
Mr Whitall, a P-plater, was reportedly driving home from a methadone clinic when the collision occurred.
The coronial investigation into the crash will focus on whether Mr Whitall was under the influence of drugs at the time of the crash.
Mourners embrace outside the church before going inside to start the funeral on Wednesday morning
A man embraces a woman before they go inside the church with the funeral soon to begin
Mourners stop to comfort each other and the church’s steps before they go inside
Doctors reportedly told the family it could be weeks or even months before doctors – who removed part of Jessica’s skull and kidney – knew how severe the damage to her brain was
