Talented Scots student Luca Bennett farewelled after Christmas Eve tragedy

A touching funeral service for 15-year-old Scots College student Luca J Bennett was held on the Central Coast today, where his family and friends farewelled the talented artist and basketball player.

In an overflowing auditorium, the parents of a teenage boy who was swept off rocks on Christmas Eve celebrated the life of their youngest child, labelling him the “glue that held the family together”.

A funeral service for 15-year-old Scots College student Luca J Bennett was held on the Central Coast on Friday, where his family and friends farewelled the talented artist and basketball player.

His parents Michelle and Jason told their loved ones of the last morning they spent with their boy on Christmas Eve, and how he brought joy to even the simplest of tasks.

Luca Bennett was farewelled at a moving funeral on Friday. Picture: Instagram

The funeral service for Luca J Bennett.

“I’m so grateful that I got to have a beautiful moment with my boy on his last day,” his father said.

“It’ll last forever.

“I woke him up at 10am Christmas Eve. He was sleeping diagonally, with his size 15 feet hanging off the end of the bed because they couldn’t fit in.

“I wiggled his big toe to wake him up.

“We got to make pancakes together in the kitchen that morning, and Luca said, ‘Excuse me, Mum. Dad, I think I f***ed them up’.

A large group of friends and family farewelled the talented artist and basketball player.

“We both looked at each other and just laughed. I can’t get that image out of my head.

“It’s so vivid that image in my head. My Lu. Six-foot-six, broad shoulders in his new board shorts.”

After breakfast, Luca went with friends to North Avoca Beach. They were walking along the rocks when the group was hit by a rogue wave about 2.40pm.

His friends managed to climb back onto the rocks, but Luca disappeared beneath the water.

For two days, rescuers searched frantically for the teen, however on Boxing Day it was announced the search had shifted to a recovery operation.

Luca Bennett with his mum Michelle.

On December 27, his body was found at North Avoca. A pod of dolphins was acting strangely, which led rescuers to his body. It was a comfort to his parents to know they were protecting him, and with him until he was found.

Luca’s five older siblings carried his coffin into the funeral, each of them sharing their favourite memories about their “big little brother”, who they all called “Lu the glue”.

He was the sixth baby of their “blended Brady bunch family”, a young man they were all immensely proud of.

“You grew into such an extraordinary person,” his brother Bailey said.

“Your artistic curiosity showed in every drawing. Your sportsman’s determination carried through every game, and your easy going sense of humour that could light up any room.”

Surf rescue teams search for Luca Bennett at North Avoca. Picture: NewsWire/Tom Parrish

A talented basketball player who played on scholarship at Scots College, his teammates from The Rebels all wore their jerseys in his honour, and his very own number 17 was hung over his coffin, along with an indigenous flag.

While he was taken “far too soon”, his family told of his full and well-lived life, no matter how short it was.

“True to the meaning of his name, he was the bringer of light to all he encountered,” Jason said.

“He fit a lifetime of love, laughter, happiness and experiences into 15 years.

“Although we would do anything to have him back, we believe he was here for a short but an impactful time as he is on to bigger and brighter things, wherever he is in the universe.”

Originally published as Talented Scots student Luca Bennett farewelled after Christmas Eve tragedy