Cork's 'bridges of hope' lit up for those lost to suicide 

Volunteers from Cork City Missing Persons Search and Recovery taking part in the Bear Faith and Bear Hope campaign traversing the river from the Port of Cork to the Mercy Hospital. Picture: Larry Cummins

There were emotional scenes on Cork’s bridges as some 200 family members and volunteers lit candles and held phones aloft in memory of those lost to suicide, while two giant, brightly lit teddy bears made a symbolic journey up the north channel of the River Lee.

As part of Cork Penny Dinners’ Bridges of Hope campaign, Bear Faith and Bear Hope traversed the river from the Port of Cork to the Mercy Hospital, and the haunting sound of bagpipes playing “Amazing Grace” echoed from bridge to bridge while darkness fell.