Photos: SergioBetancort
With the maritime procession in honor of Nuestra del Carmen, the residents of the seafaring neighborhood of Valterra concluded their festivities. At 6:00 p.m. this Sunday on the esplanade of the Insular Hospital, the celebration of the Holy Mass began, presided over by the priest Santiago Cerrato, a Carmelite Missionary who was assisted by the parish priest of Valterra, Nicanor Bermúdez. In the front row at the foot of the hospital stairs were the patients accompanied by their families and healthcare personnel, and on the sides were the parishioners who, on such a special day, came to accompany the Virgen del Carmen and participate in the Holy Mass.
On this occasion, it also included the participation of the Iris del Mar Choir, neighborhood residents, who enlivened the celebration with their songs. Santiago Cerrato in his homily dedicated some emotional words to the patients who are residing in the hospital, "to them who had given everything for their children today need the care, company and affection of the family".
Once the Holy Mass was finished, the procession began, led by the La Unión Musical band directed by Professor Alfonso Duro Cabezón. Closely following was the image of Nuestra Señora del Carmen carried on the shoulders by porters, and behind the image, the celebrating priests and parishioners.
When they arrived at the monument "The Light that Guides Us", dedicated to the sailors who died at sea, the image stopped and next to the other image of Carmen that is in the monument, they listened to two prayers made into songs performed by the choir "El Cribo Canta and the Iris del Mar choir". Then the procession continued to the Puerto Naos dock where the boat "La Bocaina" of the Ministry of Fisheries of the Government of the Canary Islands was docked. This year he had the honor of walking the Patron Saint of sailors through the waters of the bay of Arrecife accompanied by several fishing and recreational boats. When they reached the height of the islet of La Fermina, everyone made a stop surrounding the boat that carried the Virgin and for a few minutes they stopped sounding their horns to participate with the parish priest Nicanor Bermúdez in the prayer and floral offering in memory of the deceased sailors. A very emotional moment where the horns of the boats, the applause of the public and the cheers to the Virgin were heard again.
Later, at the dock, the disembarkation of the image took place and, accompanied by the chords of the music band and the parishioners, they entered the seafaring neighborhood of Valterra, where the residents of the 80 homes received her with firecrackers and flower petals. At this point, the neighbor Ana Vizcaíno dedicated an emotional poem to her while the Salve Marinera sung by the Iris del Mar choir was heard in the background. When the image of Carmen arrived next to the church, the sky was illuminated with the colors that the fireworks gave off, in charge of putting an end to the festivities in honor of the Patron Saint of Sailors.