Bono: Eunice Kennedy Shriver was a Friend and Mentor

U2 star Bono is opening up about the late Eunice Kennedy Shriver, whose funeral was held earlier Friday.

In a written statement Bono says his “mouth is unusually shut” after Shriver’s passing, according to the Associated Press. He goes on to call her “a friend, mentor, and matriarch of the community that binds all activists.”

The star singer couldn’t attend Shriver’s funeral on Friday in Massachusetts because U2 was slated to play shows at London’s Wembley Stadium, says the AP, adding that Bono sent a trio of Irish musicians to perform at her wake and burial.