Mary

After leaving Lagarie, Mary struggled to maintain a normal life as a new mother.

She moved to America but her children are still in Scotland. Though she is in constant touch, she has regrets. “I wish I could go back in time. Be able to go back and explain things a bit more. I regret I wasn’t a more hands-on mum.”

Now the story of Lagarie is finally being told, the 57-year-old says she hopes it might help explain why she wasn’t able to have the kind of relationship with her children that they wanted.

Mary works as pre kindergarten teacher and loves every minute of it. “I will never be able to put what happened at Lagarie behind me. But it’s not the first thing I think about anymore.”

Norma

Norma’s adulthood has at times been chaotic and punctuated by abusive relationships with men. She has five children and eight grandchildren, and is close to all of them.

She has battled mental illness throughout her life and sought escape by cutting herself.

The recent trauma of reliving the events of her childhood led to a breakdown and stay in hospital, from which she appears to be slowly recovering.

“I want my story told," she says.

“I want people to know what they did to us. I want the Sailors’ Society to know that I’ve been in hospital for the past month and what Lagarie has done to my life. I want them to know.”

Angela

On leaving Lagarie Angela married quickly, but the marriage failed. She married again and had two children, whom she adores, though their father died young.

Over the years Angela too has struggled with her mental health. Diagnosed with PTSD, she suffers from extreme anxiety, but finds comfort in painting and music. She has learned to play guitar and harmonica through the various support groups she joined. The 56-year-old has a partner, Irvine, who dotes on her.

Several years ago, she attempted to confront her past by writing a book about Lagarie. She called it, “Deliver us from Evil.”

Few have read this raw, unpublished account. But the story of the Montgomery sisters and their lifelong attempt to escape the horrors of Lagarie deserves to be told.