The devastated father of Kellon Hill yesterday made an emotional call for forgiveness for the people who killed his son.

Daniel Hill was one of a host of family members and friends to pay tribute to the 18-year-old stabbing victim at a funeral service at a packed Southampton Seventh-day Adventist Church.

As the congregation clapped and yelled support, a tearful Mr. Hill told them: "To those who have done this: What an awesome God!

"I challenge this God of Jehovah, this Jesus of Nazareth, to snatch these children out of the hands of the evil one and save them. And save them.

"Forgive them, for they don't know what they do."

Explaining how he has tried to put into perspective his son's fatal stabbing at an Elbow Beach party ten days ago, Mr. Hill said: "I believe that at some point during the fight the Lord called and Kellon answered: 'Yes, Lord.' He had a choice: to stay on earth and fight or just leave. My son would never walk away from a fight. Never.

"He would never leave a fight but he left that fight, and he left the fight because the Lord came and took him."

Mr. Hill, a well-known musician, also brought many of the congregation to their feet with a rousing rendition of a song.

Hundreds of people crammed into the church for a three-hour service, with numerous mourners standing in the aisles and at the side, scores watching a televised link-up downstairs and more gathering outside the entrance.

Speaker after speaker described Mr. Hill's death as a wake-up call to Bermuda, describing him as a promising student caught in the wrong place at the wrong time; not a "bad apple" whose gang lifestyle had brought its comeuppance.

Some offered comfort to his family by suggesting the tragedy may act as a catalyst for bringing about a better Bermuda in which people are no longer prepared to accept the gang violence which has plagued the Island.

Premier Ewart Brown — one of a large contingent of politicians from both sides of the fence — gave a speech calling for older people to take better control of the Island's young people.

"This young man, full of promise and hope, was our boy as much as he was Danny's and as much as he was Gail's," said the Premier."Even those without a son, they know Kellon as the kind of son they would want."The Premier assured Mr. Hill's killing had not gone silently by, adding:"The circumstances of his death have spoken to me and my colleagues and I hope they have spoken to you."We must be better parents, not only to our own children, but to our neighbours' children. Find out what they are doing; find out who they are with. We must meddle like we are parents first, instead of mingling like we are friends."Personal, one-on-one contact with a young person who respects you, even looks up to you, is a valuable resource which should never be underrated."Dr.Brown concluded:"We understand now that the village needs stronger parenting and monitoring and watching, perhaps more now than ever before."We understand there is more work to be done if we want to protect our country from a downward spiral. RIP young man, you have given your country a life of lessons. Your family should be proud."Pastor Damon Hendrickson, who less than a year ago preached at the funeral of shooting victim Shaki Crockwell, opened his eulogy by declaring:"We are almost becoming used to hearing about murder."He continued:"I wonder how many lives over the course of time here in Bermuda are going to get cut down? How many more parents will have to bury their own sons and daughters?"How many more times are we as a community going to lament about a loss and have our dreams snatched away from us?"Just how does something this awful happen in a place we call paradise?"What kind of Bermuda are we living in today when we can no longer gather as a country and no be worried about something bad happening?"What kind of Bermuda are we living in today when people of Somerset can no longer be friends with people in Hamilton?"What kind of Bermuda are we living in today when we gather for a football game and the Police have to worry about people carrying machetes, knives and guns?"What kind of Bermuda are we living in today when drive-by and ride-by shootings occur as folks stand on the street?"What kind of Bermuda are we living in today when more and more of our kids find more solace on the streets than they do in the home? What kind of Bermuda are we living in today when we go from babies having babies to babies killing babies?"The pastor said Mr. Hill's death had galvanised the community, adding:"These aren't the usual circumstances. Kellon wasn't a bad apple in a good bunch. He wasn't some boy we had to chase into school. He was on his way to college. He had graduated from high school."