Lisa Thompson's death left a ripple of pain throughout the entire family, her son said in victim impact statement, after a 40-year-old man was sentenced to life in prison for her murder in Ballymun in Dublin almost three years ago.
Brian McHugh, of Cairn Court, Poppintree in Ballymun, was found guilty by a jury last month of murdering the 52-year-old in May 2022.
Her sister, Ashley Duckett, told the court that Ms Thompson had been in a dark place before her death, but she said that was not a reflection on how she lived her life.
The court heard victim impact statements read by Ms Duckett, from Ms Thompson's two children, who were 12 and 13 when their mother was murdered.
Ms Thompson's son said her absence had left an irreplaceable void.
Her daughter told McHugh he had not just taken their mother's life but had taken her own and her brother's whole world.
She said half of their hearts went with their mother.
Outside court, Ms Thompson’s friends Susan Browne and Samantha McCormack paid tribute to a woman they described as a wonderful mother and a neighbour with a heart of gold.
The trial heard Ms Thompson's body was found in her house at Sandyhill Gardens in Ballymun, on 10 May 2022 after her neighbours became concerned.
She had been stabbed 11 times in the chest and a window blind cord was wrapped around her neck.
McHugh's DNA was found on the cord and he was seen on CCTV footage in the early hours of the morning on 9 May 2022 approaching Ms Thompson's house.
The court heard Ms Thompson had been dealing prescription drugs from her home, and that she and McHugh had what was described as "a bit of a fling" in the year before murder.
The trial also heard text messages sent from another named woman to McHugh in June 2022, one of which said "I could have been like Lisa strangle n stab" at a time when details of the strangulation injuries had not been released publicly.
The woman also said she was "going to the cops".
The jury delivered a unanimous guilty verdict after just under three-and-a-half hours of deliberating.
Ms Justice Karen O'Connor imposed the mandatory life sentence on McHugh.
She said Ms Thompson's sister had represented her by ensuring the last voice the trial heard from was Ms Thompson's voice through her beautiful children.
She said Ms Thompson's friends and family had conducted themselves with extraordinary dignity, despite the devastating and heartbreaking evidence about her violent death in horrific and brutal circumstances.
The judge said Ms Thompson's love for her children was palpable in the evidence heard throughout the trial.
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