It was only after her death that the family of 13-year-old Mariah Seenath disco­vered she had talent, ambi­tion, and a drive to lift herself out of a life most of us will never know.

Unknown to them, Mariah had become a celebrated member of her school’s football academy. She was learning to sew, and was giving her best in her academic studies.

last rites: Relatives and friends of Mariah Seenath, who was found dead in a grassy track near her home, carry her casket at her funeral in Ste Madeleine last week.