A memorial ceremony was held over the weekend to honor the lives lost during Korean Airline Flight 801 crash 25 years ago.

It’s been a quarter-century since the tragic crash, but still the pain remains for those that lost a loved one that day. Over the weekend, a memorial ceremony was held at the KAL 801 Monument in Nimitz Hill to reflect and honor the lives lost. Families of the victims were in attendance to pay their respects. 

Chairman of the bereaved family organization Chang Ho Lee shared his pain in knowing 229 souls were lost in the crash. A translation was given by Joe Rios on behalf of Mr. Lee. "25 years ago we lost our parents, brothers, sisters and children," Rios announced. "Our loved ones, we have been living a heartbroken life. At the time we lost our loved ones, their shape and image are still in our memories. The day the Korean Air crashed on Guam, the bereaved families won’t forget the tragedy. Our hearts were torn and we have been living with the pain for 25 years. Time has passed by and we are slowly losing our memories."

Also present at the event was Hannah Gutierrez Arroyo, daughter of former governor Carl Gutierrez, who gave her fathers remarks in his place. "We are here to honor the 229 souls lost as a result of the crash and to remember the 25 survivors who endured an ordeal most of us could not even imagine. And as horrible as this tragedy was, I pray that we, but especially the family members, will also remember how a community of people of different races, nationalities, languages and beliefs came together as a single human family and help see each other through this difficult time," Arroyo said.

Though she was not present at the memorial ceremony, U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Albania Yuri Kim shared how they cope with the loss of her mother, just one of the victims lost during the crash. She said, "For us, for our family, we think that the best way that we can honor my mother is to carry on with her support for young women, young students for education and for a sense of optimism and self empowerment. So that’s why we carry on."

A legislative resolution was also presented to the families of the deceased by the 36th Guam Legislature to recognize the lives lost that terrible day.

The ceremony ended with the wreath presentations from the families of Korean Airline Flight 801, some of the first responders present during the crash, Korean Airlines and the offices of the governor and lieutenant governor, as well as the legislature.