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4-12-2007 By CASEY CAMPBELL Staff Writer "There is not a heart in this vast place that does not ache," said Rev. John P. Rosson from St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Cooperstown, who presided over the Mass of Christian Burial. "He will be forever smiling. He has left footprints on your lives that time will never wash away." Gentile was killed last Thursday at approximately 6:30 p.m. on County Route 33 in Middlefield when, according to sheriff Richard Devlin, he lost control of his speeding sport-utility vehicle. His 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee rolled several times, ejecting Gentile, who was not wearing a seat belt. The CCS senior was pronounced dead at the scene. He was 18-years-old. Both Chris’ adoptive mother Penney S. Gentile and his birth mother Michelle attended the service, walking in alongside one another at the start of the mass. Rev. Rosson said Gentile was consecrating the gym, the site of so many small victories and defeats and the liveliest place in the school. "Christopher Gentile has made this a holy place," he said. "Whenever someone makes a lay-up or a basket, they must look up because he is looking down on you with great love." Dale Petroskey and Les Sittler gave remarks of remembrance at the service. Both have sons who were close friends and classmates of Gentile. "We all knew Chris well," Petroskey said. "Chris belonged to all of us." Petroskey said Gentile had three enormous gifts. The first was his mother, Penney, who "put everything into being Super Mom," he said. She taught him compassion, cared for him with all her heart and helped train him for the three sports " tennis, basketball and soccer " he became so good at. His second gift was his "larger than life" personality, Petroskey said. Gentile knew he had a gift for making people happy and making people laugh, and he was comfortable being the center of attention, be it at a party, on the tennis courts or shouting to friends in the halls between classes. "It made everything more fun when he was around," Petroskey said. Sure, Chris could be maddening and at times exasperating, Petroskey said, but with his charm, big brown eyes and wide smile, you could never stay mad at him for more than five minutes. The third gift was his pure athleticism and a competitive drive that made Gentile so good at every sport he played, Petroskey said. His constant energy and love of life left him constantly on the go trying to squeeze in as much as possible, and as Penney Gentile told Petroskey Friday, "At least now I know where he is. He’s in the best place he could be: in God’s hands." Sittler said everyone would treasure the time they had with Gentile and that he was one of the few who burned so brightly from the moment he was born. "Such beauty can only be for a short time," he said. Following the service, Gentile was laid to rest in St. Mary’s Cemetery in Index. |
Copyright 2007, Cooperstown Crier, Cooperstown, NY All rights reserved