On Monday 24th August 2026, our beloved Julian Amaral, aged just 23, travelled to Portugal with his family to attend two family weddings. What should have been a beautiful family trip together turned into a tragedy none of us could ever have imagined.

On Tuesday 1st September, Julian attended a boat party on the River Tagus in Lisbon with his cousin. During the evening, Julian went missing from the boat and, despite desperate efforts to find him, he did not return.

What followed were days of fear, uncertainty and relentless searching. Julian’s family searched across Lisbon, worked with the Portuguese authorities and did everything possible to find him. Throughout those days, we held onto every bit of hope and prayed that Julian would be found safe and brought home to us.

Tragically, on Sunday 7th September 2026, Julian was found.

Our hearts are completely broken.

Julian was only 23 years old. He was a deeply loved son, brother, cousin, nephew, uncle, grandson and friend. He had his whole life ahead of him, and no family should ever have to prepare to say goodbye to someone so young.

Our family is now facing the devastating reality of losing Julian away from home. Alongside the unimaginable grief, there are significant and unexpected costs involved in bringing Julian home from Portugal and giving him the farewell he deserves.

We are raising funds to help towards the costs of bringing Julian home, funeral arrangements and the other unexpected expenses that come with losing a loved one abroad.

More than anything, we want to bring Julian home to the friends who love him and give him a beautiful and dignified farewell.

If you are able to donate, no matter the amount, your support would mean more to our family than words could ever express. If you are unable to donate, simply sharing this fundraiser would mean so much to us too.

Thank you to every single person who searched, shared Julian’s face, sent messages, prayed for him and supported our family during the most painful days of our lives. We will never forget the love that was shown for Julian.

Please continue to keep Julian and our family in your thoughts and prayers as we try to navigate a loss we never imagined we would have to face.

Rest peacefully, Julian. ️

Forever 23. Forever loved.