HAY RIVER - A memorial has been unveiled to honour those throughout history who lost their lives on the Hay River and Great Slave Lake.

Commercial fisherman Shawn Buckley, left, and Peter Osted, co-chair of the Hay River Museum Society, discuss the just-unveiled Anchor Memorial, which is to commemorate people lost over the years on the Hay River and Great Slave Lake. - Paul Bickford/NNSL photo

A dedication ceremony for the Anchor Memorial took place Oct. 9 at the Hay River Heritage Centre.

"It is done today with memory of all those who have perished on this lake, and there are many over the years," said Vicky Latour, co-chair of the Hay River Museum Society.

The memorial consists of a 950-kilogram anchor donated by Northern Transportation Company Limited.

Peter Osted, the other co-chair of the museum society, said it is impossible to know how many people have died on the river and the lake, including the untold number of aboriginal people lost during the thousands of years before recorded history.

"I would venture to say there are hundreds in recorded history here in town," Osted said.

Those lost include fishers, barge workers, pleasure boaters and people operating Bombardiers, he said. "And even the saddest ones - little kids who run out on the ice and go through."

Osted said he would like for the monument to eventually include as many names as possible of those who have been lost over the years.

Mayor Kelly Schofield said the unveiling of the monument marked an important yet solemn occasion for the town.

"We have gathered to remember and pay homage to all those who have lost their lives on our waterways from people earning a living from the water to those simply enjoying the beauty and fun the water can bring," Schofield said. "We remember them and acknowledge the loss their families will always feel."

The mayor said everyone knows someone who has lost a loved one to the river or the lake.

"I myself and my family have lost family on this lake, and I know that they are not, nor will they ever be, forgotten," he said.

Schofield also said he hopes the monument will serve as a warning about how dangerous it can be out on the water.

Shawn Buckley, who lost his father and a brother to the river and the lake, said the memorial is a personal thing for him.

"It's nice to be recognizing them," he said, adding the memorial is important for him and his family.

Like Osted, Buckley - a commercial fisherman on Great Slave Lake - would also like to see the names of people lost to Great Slave Lake or the Hay River added to the monument.

Osted said the monument was placed outside the gates of the Hay River Heritage Centre so visitors can see it at any time, adding he hopes it will become a tourist attraction.

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