Wreaths to commemorate those lost at sea were brought to the altar during mass in St Peter's Church, Kilmore Quay, at the annual memorial ceremony which was held on Sunday 21 June 2008.
After the church ceremony a lone piper led a procession to the Memorial Trail and Garden at Forlorn Point, overlooking Ballyteigue Bay, where the wreaths were laid. The Memorial Trail, which is called the Journey of Hope leads to the Garden which is dedicated to the memory of those lost at sea, particularly those whose bodies were never recovered.
Sam Williams, retired Depot Bosun, laid a wreath in memory of the six members of the crew of the Irish Lights vessel SS Isolda killed when the vessel was bombed by a Luftwaffe aeroplane on 19 December 1940, who are commemorated in the Memorial Garden. Sam is the last living survivor of the attack.
The Garden is designed in the shape of a ship with a mast, ship's wheel, a compass fountain, the propeller from SS Lennox, lost off the Saltee Islands in 1916, and a vigil sculpture of two grieving figures.
While not overtly religious, since its opening in 2001 the Garden has become a place of pilgrimage in which to remember loved ones lost at sea - a special place where family members can try to come to terms with their loss, which also represents a journey of hope for the living.