Sister honors brother with Cars-themed funeral and Lightning McQueen tattoos

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A tattoo artist from the UK is gaining attention online for the heartwarming, Cars-themed funeral she created for her brother, a huge fan of the movie Lightning McQueen.

Elle Cartel is a tattoo artist who owns BANQ Studios, a tattoo and piercing shop in Birmingham, England.

In March 2025, she lost her younger brother to leukemia, a cancer of the blood and bone marrow. He had bravely fought the illness for a decade.

He asked Elle, before he passed away, to give a Lightning McQueen tattoo to anyone who cared about him. Elle has since tattooed over fifty people with the character as a tribute to his wishes and memory.

Sister’s Car-themed funeral for brother leaves viewers in tears

A year has passed since her brother passed away. On March 8, 2026, she posted pictures from his funeral, which had a fun theme based on the character Lightning McQueen.

Everyone at the event dressed up as Lightning McQueen, and Elle went all out – she even had custom nails designed with the character on them. She arranged for a car decorated with McQueen’s colors and racing stripes to transport family and friends to the funeral home.

The gravesite was adorned with flower arrangements featuring characters from the movie Cars, and Rascal Flatts’ song “Life is a Highway” – the film’s theme song – was played during the service.

Elle shared on TikTok that after everyone arrived in their cars, they revved their engines for about two minutes. She said it was a very emotional moment, and they did it so the person they were honoring could hear them.

To support her brother during his fight with Leukemia, Elle gave all the money she made from selling her Cars-themed temporary tattoos to Young Lives vs Cancer, a charity that helps kids and young adults battling cancer.

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A post shared by The Archbishop of Banterbury🇬🇧 (@thearchbishopofbanterbury)

Elle marked World Cancer Day with a heartfelt message, remembering those who have battled cancer – those who are still fighting, those we’ve lost, and expressing her love and grief for them all.

Okay, so I just stumbled across this TikTok, and honestly, it wrecked me. It’s a girl sharing a video from her brother’s funeral, and it’s spreading everywhere. Everyone’s saying it’s super emotional and they’re all crying. It’s really hitting people hard.

“What a fantastic tribute. He would have loved that,” one user commented.

Someone shared, “I’m already crying, and it’s not even 8:30 on a Monday! It’s a really emotional—and surprisingly beautiful—moment.”

This marks the second time a funeral has gained attention online after tourists mistakenly wandered into a memorial service, thinking it was a free meal, back in February.

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2026-03-09 21:49