Wick illustrated talks by Seafarers Memorial Group

Volunteers raising money for a memorial to lost seafarers will continue their fundraising efforts by presenting two illustrated talks in Wick next week.

The Seafarers Memorial Group is seeking to erect a memorial at the town’s Braehead in memory of all seafarers lost at sea from or in the WK registration area.

The talks will take place in the Wick community campus on Tuesday, July 30, starting at 7pm with local historian Andy Anderson discussing Wrecks of the Pentland Firth. The second talk is by former Wick Harbour Authority chairman Willie Watt, entitled Wick Harbour – A New Beginning.

Admission is £5 and there will be a raffle during the interval.

Many coastal communities have memorials for those lost at sea but there is nothing of this nature in the far north of Scotland and the group members are aiming to remedy that.

They have already received donations totalling over £14,000 and have a crowdfunding page where people can donate. This can be accessed from their Facebook page, Seafarers Memorial Group.

The group was contacted by Isobel Leask with information relating to a fishing tragedy in which her great-grandfather, Donald Rosie, along with two of a crew, perished while returning from the fishing grounds off Staxigoe in March 1895.

While group members were visiting Mrs Leask to learn more about the event she made a generous donation towards the funds that will be used to create a fitting memorial.

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