FARMINGTON – The slow, melodious sound of a bagpipe broke the quiet at St. Joseph’s Church on Monday as pallbearers escorted the casket of young Lisa Marie Cerqueira down the aisle.

Tears flowed as immediate family members and Cerqueira’s fiance, Farmington police officer Rick Billian, followed the casket as friends, family and co-workers of Cerqueira and Billian watched.

The 20-year-old Wilton woman died last Tuesday at a Portland hospital from injuries she suffered when a vehicle struck the snowmobile she and Billian, 23, of Strong, were riding Feb. 23 in Farmington.

The couple had planned to marry this August.

The Rev. Roger Chabot talked about the couple’s visits to the rectory and shared traits of Cerqueira that the family had mentioned to him.

“She had love for her family, fiance, friends and all kinds of animals. She valued relationships. They were important in her life. She radiated energy. Her smile lit up every room she entered. Her laughter radiated joy. She was at peace with herself and others. She was an easy person to be around and reached out to everyone. She had a plan, was organized, and knew what she wanted to be in life. She touched the lives of many people,” he said. “and with baptism, she died in Christ and will live with Christ.”

Billian’s mother, Josette, also eulogized Cerqueira, saying she sat at her computer struggling with words and thinking, “This is not what needs to be done right now; we have a wedding to plan.”

While Cerqueira spent four days in an induced coma at Maine Medical Center in Portland, she said, they knew there were angels waiting to lead her home, even though they prayed she would return to them. She said she told her son to cherish the last kiss Cerqueira gave him while she was still conscious at Franklin Memorial Hospital in Farmington before she was transferred to Portland.

“For the time she was here, she was a gift from God,” Josette Billian said.

Courtney Ryder, a friend of Cerqueira’s, read a poem she felt Cerqueira would have written from heaven: “Here there are no tears or sadness, just eternal love.” Another line expressed the beloved woman’s philosophy of life, she said: “As you give unto the world, the world will give to you.”

After the service, friends and classmates shared their memories.

“Lisa never had a bad thing to say about anybody,” said Mt. Blue High School classmate Stacie Cozart. “She smiled beautifully but was quiet and shy.”

Will Plancon added, “She made everything more fun.”

“Lisa got along with everyone. If anyone needed a hand, she would help them out,” Cassie White said.

A friend of the family for the past 10 years, Tiffany White remembered the young woman as happy go lucky.

A mother of one of Cerqueira’s best friends, Lori James, said Cerqueira lived with her family for a while. “She was perfect, loved everyone, loved her pets and gained our love very quickly.”

Farmington police Chief Richard Caton III led a procession of Farmington, Livermore Falls, Auburn and state police officers, and Farmington and Chesterville firefighters into the service in support of Billian.

Auburn police officer Nathan Westleigh played the bagpipe at the start and close of the funeral.

Farmington police officer Mary Pratt, a close friend of Cerqueira’s, organized an honor guard, which stood at attention outside the church as guests entered and left.

Family and friends gathered at St. Joseph’s Parish Hall across Quebec Street for a reception immediately after the service.