The celebration of the Valterra maritime procession closed this Sunday the festivities in honor of Our Lady of Carmen of the seafaring neighborhood.
At 6:00 p.m. on the esplanade of the island hospital, the Eucharist began, presided over by the parish priest of Valterra, Clemente López, dedicated especially to the male and female patients residing in these facilities. During the celebration they were accompanied by their families, the health personnel and having in front of them the image of Our Lady of Carmen.
The songs were enlivened by the Iris del Mar choir, formed by women from the seafaring neighborhood with the musical accompaniment of neighbor Norbe Cruz. The celebration this Sunday was very emotional as it happens every year when the image is located in front of patients and family members who, very excited, do not stop looking at it.
The Eucharist ends, the procession started to Puerto de Naos, headed by the Music Band La Unión Musical de Lanzarote, directed by Professor Pepe Artiles. During the tour, upon arriving next to the monument The Light that Guides Us, a work by the Favorite Son of Lanzarote, Juan Brito Martín, the image of Our Lady of Carmen was waiting, producing an emotional encounter between both images.
After listening to the voices of the Iris del Mar choir, Pedro de Armas Rodríguez, who had served as parish priest in Valterra (years 1974-1982), pronounced some historical words related to the murder of the seven Lanzarote sailors who were fishing in international waters off the coast of Western Sahara on September 28, 1978.
After this moment, the procession headed towards the Puerto de Naos dock where the fishing boat El Picao was waiting, owned by Francisco Martín Hernández and who this year had the honor of walking the Patron Saint of sailors through the bay of Arrecife. During the maritime tour, many more boats accompanied the journey, highlighting the capacity of passengers who were able to enjoy the navigation on the catamaran Madre Consuelo, from the Biosfera Express shipping company, which arrived from the island of La Graciosa, captained by Captain Luis Toledo.
When El Picao, which carried the Virgin, reached the height of the commercial dock, all the boats formed a circle and stopped their engines to say a prayer for the sailors who died at sea, throwing bouquets of flowers, heading back to Puerto de Naos where the entourage returned to the church where Our Lady of Carmen made her entrance to cheers and applause, with fireworks bringing the event to a close.
