(CNN) — Shanann Watts, the pregnant Colorado woman who police say was killed along with her two daughters by her husband, was remembered at her funeral Saturday as a “fireball” who strove to be a great mother and support medical research. The funeral Mass for Shanann Watts and her daughters, Bella, 4, Celeste, 3, and her unborn son was held at a church in North Carolina, the state where Watts was raised. “Shanann was a woman of love. She loved God, she loved her family and she loved her friends,” the Rev. John Forbes said at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Pinehurst. Forbes also read from a letter from Shanann’s brother, Frankie Rzucek, who wrote that she “was born to be a mother.” “Boy, was she ready,” Rzucek’s letter reads. “Closets were full even before she knew she was pregnant. She couldn’t wait.” “She was very successful and independent before any man came along, and that’s just the way she wanted it,” Rzucek’s letter said. “I always worried about her and the girls being so far because I couldn’t protect them.” Watts, 34, and her two daughters were reported missing August 13 from their home north of Denver, hours after she returned from a business trip. Chris Watts – Shanann’s husband and the girls’ father – told a TV station the next day that he wanted them back home. But the bodies of Shanann Watts and the girls were found later that week on the property of a Colorado oil company where Chris Watts once worked. Chris Watts, 33, was arrested and charged last month in Colorado with with first-degree murder in their deaths. Shanann Watts’ family has said that she had planned to name her unborn son Nico. At Saturday’s funeral, prayers were said for him as well as for Watts and her daughters. The funeral was livestreamed on the Facebook page of a funeral home. Forbes said Shanann’s mother described her as a fireball, and said she worked toward several dreams. Shanann had lupus, Forbes said, and wanted to support research into the disease. Shanann’s daughters “were light for all around them,” Forbes said. “They were filled with life and joy and shared it with all those they encountered.”<doc-sep>Hundreds of mourners paid their respects to the slain family in an tear-filled ceremony Shanann Watts and Children Laid to Rest in Emotional Funeral: 'You Are Nothing but Pure Love' Hundreds of mourners assembled at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Pinehurst, North Carolina, on Saturday to pay their final respects to Shanann Watts and her daughters, 4-year-old Bella and 3-year-old Celeste. Pallbearers brought the three caskets into the church; they were placed in front of the congregation. Many of the mourners wiped their eyes as the coffins entered the sanctuary. Get push notifications with news, features and more. The funeral started with a congregational singing of Amazing Grace, followed by Scripture readings and additional hymns. The 90-minute long ceremony contained no reference to Shanann’s husband, Chris Watts, who is accused of murdering his entire family. “Shanann was a woman of love,” Father John Forbes told the mourners. “She loved God, her family and her friends. She was a woman of determination. She had dreams to be fulfilled, and she worked towards to those dreams. She wanted to make a difference. She wanted to be an exceptional wife and mother.” “Bella Marie and Celeste Catherine were light for all those around them,” he continued. “They were filled with life and joy, and they shared those with all those they encountered.” Shanann was 15 weeks pregnant. Father Forbes mentioned that the family would like to pass a law to recognize the lives of unborn children like her son, Niko. Despite the violent deaths of Shanann and the children, the family shared a message of love. “They do not want vengeance and death but justice and light,” Forbes told the mourners. shanann-watts-2 Shanann Watts (right) and her daughters | Credit: Shanann Watts /Facebook Father Forbes then read some remarks from Shanann’s family. “Thank you heavenly father. I know our family is with you in paradise; I can’t thank you enough,” read the statement from Shanann’s mother, Snadra. “Please give every soul on earth who has prayed, cried or reached out to us only your precious blessings. I can only pray to you that this tragedy changes everyone’s soul to be close to you. Please continue to hold us all in your love and protection.” “Shanann, Bella Marie, Celeste Catherine, and Niko Lee, Mom/Nona loves you with all of my soul,” she said. “May god bless all of you always, love Mommy/Nona.” RELATED: Pregnant Mom & 2 Daughters Likely Killed at Home — Allegedly by Husband — Before Bodies Were Dumped The priest then read a statement from Shanann’s father, Frank Rzucek. “I have so much to say, but I will make it short,” Rzucek said. “Daddy loves you. You are a wonderful daughter and a great mother. You are nothing but pure love, always caring for everyone. You will always be daddy’s little girl. Until we meet again, I love you with all my heart, see you later. Love you, Dad. Butterfly kisses.” Then Rzucek addressed the grandchildren. “Dear Bella and Celeste and Niko, You will always be pop pop’s little girls and precious grandson. You make my day filled with smiles, even when I feel bad or sad. Bella, you will always be my ‘silver bells’ Celeste, pop pop will take care of your truck. Throwing kisses and hugs to all of you. See you later, Love you always, your Pop Pop.”<doc-sep>
PINEHURST, N.C. -- Shanann Watts will be remembered as a "woman of love" and her two young two daughters as being filled with life and joy, a priest said Saturday during a funeral service for the slain Colorado family found at an oil work site. The hour-long service in Pinehurst, North Carolina, included no reference to 33-year-old Christopher Watts, the husband and father charged in the killings. Police say he killed his 34-year-old pregnant wife and their daughters, four-year-old Bella and three-year-old Celeste, inside the family's suburban Denver home then dumped their bodies on his former employer's property. During the funeral at a Catholic church, Father John Forbes read comments aloud from Shanann Watts' father, mother and brother. Watts is from North Carolina; the couple moved to Colorado shortly after they married about six years ago. "You are nothing but pure love, always caring for everyone," her father, Frank Rzucek, wrote. "You will always be daddy's little girl." Forbes said the victim's mother, Sandra Onorati Rzucek, described Shanann as a "fireball" and asked God to "give all our love" to her daughter and grandchildren. "Mom, Nonna, loves you with all her soul," she wrote. Forbes said Shanann Watts' family would like to see good come from the tragedy, including a law to recognize the lives of unborn children such as their grandson. "They do not desire vengeance and death, but justice and life," Forbes said. Family members say Shanann Watts was pregnant with a boy who she planned to name Nico. Colorado is one of 12 states without a law broadly allowing for homicide charges in the violent death of fetuses. Prosecutors have charged Christopher Watts with murder and other charges, including unlawful termination of a pregnancy, a felony. A friend asked police on Aug. 13 to check on Shanann Watts and her children after she could not reach them via text or phone. Police searched the family's home in Frederick and found Shanann Watts' purse and phone still there. Christopher Watts remains in a Colorado jail without bail and has not yet entered a plea. During interviews with television stations before his arrest, he spoke about missing his family. Prosecutors have said the girls' bodies had been submerged for days inside a tank holding crude oil and their mother was buried in a shallow grave. Authorities say Christopher Watts told investigators that he killed his wife because she had strangled their daughters after he told her he wanted to separate. Prosecutors charged him with killing all three family members.