WESTBOROUGH, Mass. - A project more than a decade in the making to honor patients at the former Westborough State Hospital who were buried in unmarked graves celebrated a major milestone on Thursday.

Those involved in the Westborough Cemetery Memorial Project gathered at Pine Grove Cemetery to celebrate its seven stone pillars being put into place. More than 700 people, most of them patients at the Westborough State Hospital, were buried in unmarked graves.

The idea for a memorial began with Glenn Malloy, a former trustee of the hospital. He said in 1969, he was one of the top gymnasts in the state, and had a severe mental breakdown which was later misdiagnosed as schizophrenia.

“It was the unquantifiable things, kindnesses and affirmations that people gave to me, that scattered my darkness over the years,” Malloy said. “I served on the board of trustees at Westborough State Hospital for 12 years, and God, I believe, has turned the negative, the bitter apple cider vinegar into something sweet with honey.”

Malloy added that throughout his life, surrounding himself with wonderful people helped him cope with his struggles. Seeing the memorial begin to come together fills him with hope and pride.

"It's inspiring,” Malloy said. “There's a saying in the Jewish Bible that love is as strong as death. And in a way, we're attempting to bring back their dignity and that we robbed them of. This is very close to my heart, because experientially, they gave up on me in the mental health field. Thanks to good people, I've pretty much recovered from this.”

The final step for the project will be installing bronze plates bearing the names of all those who were buried in unmarked graves. The group still needs roughly $40,000 in donations to meet their goal, and they are grateful for the community’s support so far.