Nearly 100 people gathered April 26 at the Bethlehem Rose Garden for the 24th-Annual Lehigh Valley Workers' Memorial Ceremony, hosted by the Lehigh Valley Labor Council.

John Werkheiser, chairman of the Lehigh Valley Workers' Memorial Committee, opened the ceremony. Attendees then took turns reading names from the 2014 Fatality List, a bell chiming after each name.

The Fatality List, which dates back to the 1900s, currently holds 770 names.

While no new names were added to the list this past year, 15 old names that were recovered from the early 1900s were added. According to Werkheiser, a Labor Council worker unearthed them earlier this year through newspaper research.

"Usually we don't like to add names to the list, but this time we were happy to give them the recognition they deserve," Werkheiser said.

During the ceremony, Werkheiser also dedicated six new benches to the park. The benches were added to the Rose Garden within the last few weeks as part of a community service grant project through the United Way Teen Works program.

"Someone came out last year [to the event] and thought it would be nice to put benches out for people [to enjoy]," Werkheiser said.

And enjoy they did. Over 100 people attended the event this year, and Werkheiser said he was pleased with the turnout. "It's the first time in ten years that we've had that many attend."

Next year marks the 25th-anniversary of the Worker's Memorial, and Werkheiser says the event is going to be bigger than ever.