THE funeral of an eight-year-old boy killed in a road crash tragedy is due to take place in Co Down tomorrow.
The family of Harry Steele (8) will gather for a service of thanksgiving following his death close to his home in Kircubbin on Monday.
The little boy has been described as a "very caring young man with an infectious smile".
Police said he was struck by a car on the Rowreagh Road - the main road between Kircubbin and Portaferry - at around 8.20pm.
He is believed to have been crossing the road when he was struck by a car overtaking his father's tractor. It is understood that he was going to his grandmother's house when the collision happened.
Harry was from a well-known farming family.
In a death notice, he was described as the "precious son of Samuel and Naomi, much loved brother of Alexander, Annie and Arthur".
It said a service of thanksgiving will be held at Cardy Road Gospel Hall, Greyabbey tomorrow at 10.30am followed by burial in Kirkistown Cemetery, Cloughey.
His family have asked for any donations in memory of Harry to be made payable to Air Ambulance.
A P5 pupil at Kircubbin Integrated PS, his principal Roger Irvine wrote to parents to tell them of them of the "heart-breaking loss to our school community".
He said Harry was "a quiet yet popular member of his class".
"He was extremely polite, kind and very thoughtful and had many good friends," he wrote.
"Harry was particularly animated when he had opportunities to discuss his passion for all things agricultural."
Mr Irvine also said that trained staff from the Education Authority critical incident response team will be in school to offer support and advice to staff as they help their pupils.
"Harry’s death may raise emotions, concerns, and questions for our entire school, especially pupils in Harry's class," he said.
"The wellbeing of our pupils and staff is, as always, a priority for our school."
In another post on the school Facebook page, it said Harry was a "popular, polite and very caring young man with an infectious smile".
"He will be sorely missed by us all," it added.
Numerous tributes have also been paid to the little boy on social media.
He was remembered as "a pleasure to be around and always full of smiles and laughs".
