BATON ROUGE — Firefighters and their loved ones from all over the state gathered Saturday to honor the eight heroes who lost their lives this past year.

While many mourned and tears filled the area, this was still a celebration. Boyd Petty, the vice president of the Walk of Honor Foundation, said the foundation is dedicated to keeping alive the memory of fallen firefighters.

"Not just the way they died. but how they lived their lives," Petty said. 

Of the eight honored, five died from work-related cancer. While this is still new to many, research has started to figure out why this is happening so frequently and what they can do to prevent it from happening again.

One of the cancer deaths was William Sanders.

"Even my niece was saying she wants to be a firefighter, because she remembers her uncle," his wife Dana Sanders said.

This wasn't just a memorial for those who recently passed, but for all of those in Louisiana who gave their lives in the line of duty. This is why each year they have this service, with all families welcome to join  so they can celebrate and get the closure they need.

The memorial, located at the Louisiana State Fire Marshal's office on Independence Boulevard near Florida Boulevard, is open for public viewing 24/7.