A poem read by the mother of a Lisnaskea teenager who died along with three friends in a road traffic collision 11-years-ago was one of the poignant moments during a road death remembrance event on Sunday.

Veronica O’Rourke’s 17-year-old daughter Danica died along with Anita Swift (16), Jonathan McDonald (21) and Peter Leonard (21) when the car in which they were back seat passengers crashed into a tree on the Moorlough Road in Lisnaskea in July 2006.

Mrs. O’Rourke was among the 350 people who attended the event in Castle Saunderson which remembered local people who have been killed in road traffic collisions.

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It was organised by Martina Crudden, a bereaved mother from Clones who lost her 17-year-old son Daniel in a road traffic accident in March 2011. The event coincided with World Day of Remembrance for road traffic victims and it aimed to bring comfort to grieving families. Mrs.

O’Rourke’s poem read: “My daughter died with three others in the car that night, Having gained four angels, I thought I might lose my mind, But I have battled on through and here I am 11 years on, sharing my story with you and standing strong.”

Describing the remembrance event as “absolutely beautiful,” Mrs. O’Rourke praised Ms. Crudden for her hard work as organiser.

“It was an honour to be there. It was comforting. The pain you have was exactly the same for the person behind you and in front – everyone was in the same boat,” said Mrs. O’Rourke. She recounted how her “heart stops” every time she hears of a road fatality, saying: “You take a step back and you know what those poor people are going through. It’s so awful, it never changes.”

Ms. Crudden said she will endeavour to organise the remembrance event on an annual basis.

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“There are no other support groups locally so you just do your best to get people together,” she commented. “It was my idea and I wanted to do it all myself. I had the backing of the Irish Road Safety Authority, Monaghan County Council and the representatives of the emergency services. Emotionally it was tough, but I found it rewarding,” said Ms. Crudden.

The dedicated mother wrote to family liaison officers in An Garda Síochána and the PSNI, who contacted relevant families to let them know about the event. She spoke to 80 bereaved families and gathered photos of their loved ones to display on the day. She organised music, speakers, prayers and activities for children.

“There was a massive attendance. We weren’t expecting that,” Ms. Crudden reported. Recently bereaved families – including relatives of 22-year-old Luke Lynch who died when the car he was driving crashed into a tree on the Clones Road near Newtownbutler in September – were joined by people who lost loved ones many years ago and had never remembered them at a public event.

Ms. Crudden concluded: “Unfortunately the number of deaths on our roads keeps going up. It’s out of our control but they are still here guiding us through our lives and the event was a way to honour their memory.”