This year's Battle of the Atlantic ceremony had a special meaning for a 91-year-old Navy veteran from Ontario who travelled to Halifax to see his shipmates ashes committed to the sea.

"I'm very happy, overwhelmed to be back in Halifax," said Lawrence Weldon, who was covered by a blanket during the Point Pleasant Park ceremony that commemorates the single longest battle of the Second World War. "I never thought I'd see it again, so this ceremony means quite a bit to me."

Weldon came to witness the spreading of Bert Travis' ashes. The two men were shipmates during the war and remained close friends afterward. Weldon was a guest of honour at the Halifax ceremony and he was able to get to Halifax through funding from the Colorado-based Wish of a Lifetime organization.

'It was an experience'

Lawrence Weldon was accompanied by his niece and her husband, who attended as guests of honour at the Battle of the Atlantic ceremony. (Stephanie VanKampen/CBC)

Weldon was taken to the shore in a wheelchair after the ceremony and faced HMCS Montreal, which was anchored in the harbour. He watched from afar, with tears in his eyes, as his friend Bert's ashes were sent to sea.

Weldon spent a few years serving on a ship in Halifax, said Bill Gard, a retired commander with the Royal Canadian Navy. "He served in the minesweeper HMCS Port Hope, at age 18, and he was sweeping the coast here for 3 years," said Gard.

The navy veteran remembers the city fondly, "It was an experience for an 18-year-old, I'll tell you," said Weldon.