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Julia Roberts Attends Sister’s Memorial Service

On Saturday, May 3, Julia Roberts said one final goodbye to her half-sister Nancy Motes. Roberts flew to her hometown of Smyrna, Georgia to attend the nearly two-hour memorial service, at the New Smyr...
Julia Roberts Attends Sister’s Memorial Service
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  • On Saturday, May 3, Julia Roberts said one final goodbye to her half-sister Nancy Motes.

    Roberts flew to her hometown of Smyrna, Georgia to attend the nearly two-hour memorial service, at the New Smyrna Cemetery, for her sister, who took her own life back in February.

    On February 9, Motes, who was only 37-years-old and a previous production assistant on Glee, was found dead in her home from an apparent drug overdose. A suicide letter was later discovered at the scene that made reference to the estrangement between Motes and her family.

    Although Roberts and Motes did not have the best relationship, Roberts revealed, during an interview with WSJ magazine in March, that she is still trying hard to cope with her sister’s death.

    “It’s just heartbreak. It’s only been 20 days,” Roberts said, with tears in her eyes. “There aren’t words to explain what any of us have been through in these last 20 days. It’s hour by hour some days, but you just keep looking ahead.”

    “You don’t want anything bad to happen to anyone, but there are so many tragic, painful, inexplicable things in the world. But [as with] any situation of challenge and despair, we must find a way, as a family,” she continued. “It’s so hard to formulate a sentence about it outside the weepy huddle of my family.”

    During the memorial service, surrounded by Motes’ close friends and family members, Roberts gave a brief speech about her sister. “No one was really expecting it, but Julia gave a little speech at one point during the ceremony,” a source told the Daily Mail. “She kept it brief, but it was absolutely heartfelt and very moving. It showed just how much Nancy meant to her and was really fitting.”

    There was one person missing from the service, however. Motes fiancé John Dilbeck revealed, via Twitter, that he was not invited to the intimate ceremony. “To my disappointment, I was not invited to attend the memorial services in Georgia, for my fiance #NancyMotes, Saturday May 3rd 2014Travesty,” Dilbeck tweeted.

    On Monday, Dilbeck talked to the New York Daily News, and described that lack of an invitation as devastating. “It’s devastating,” Dilbeck said. “I found out Sunday that they had the funeral service without me. They did it so there was no possible way I could attend. I believe that with all my heart. I should be allowed to pay my respects. She was the love of my life, and this would have been our wedding month. May 17 was our wedding date. I feel so empty, it’s like I have no more tears left to cry.”

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

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