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A heartbroken Julia Roberts returned to her hometown of Smyrna, Georgia, on Saturday, May 3, for an emotional memorial service to honor her half-sister, Nancy Motes.
Julia flew from Los Angeles with her mother, Betty Lou, to pay her respects at the gathering of family and friends in a remote cemetery.
During the memorial service, Julia allegedly addressed the crowd with an emotional tribute to her dead sister.
"No one was really expecting it, but Julia gave a little speech at one point during the ceremony," a source told 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."
Since Nancy died from a drug overdose in February, Julia has been criticized, but she reportedly showed her true feelings on Saturday.
Following the ceremony, Julia, 46, was one of the last to leave the New Symrna Cemetery.
"Julia was great from start to finish," the source said. "She may be a huge movie star, but she was with people she has known her whole life and had no airs and graces. She made time for everyone and we were all incredibly happy that she came. She really added to the occasion."
Julia was seen comforting a number of other mourners (see the photos), before getting into an SUV and heading to a nearby hotel for a small wake, where she also said a few words.
Nancy was reportedly discovered by paramedics on the bathroom floor of a Los Angeles house on February 9 and pronounced dead at 2:12 p.m.
Nancy died of a drug overdose -- she was just 37 years old.
A few days before her death, she tweeted that "America's Sweetheart is a 'B*tch'," making reference to Julia.
Since then, the "Pretty Woman" star has been hit with a lot of criticism. She even skipped her sister's public memorial service led by Nancy's heartbroken fiancé John Dilbeck, on March 8, in Santa Monica, California.
Julia initially stayed quiet following her half-sister's death, but she finally broke her silence last month.
Speaking to The Wall Street Journal, she said, "It's just heartbreaking. It's only been 20 days. 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. It's so hard to formulate a sentence about it outside the weepy huddle of my family," she added.
But despite Julia's affection for her sister, Nancy reportedly left a five-page suicide note blaming the actress for her final spiral into despair.
There's clearly no happy ending to this story, but it's comforting to see that Julia traveled home to spend some time with her family and close friends, while they all paid respects to Nancy.
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