Peachland salutes Queen on her jubilee

Peachlanders celebrate Queen Elizabeth’s 70th anniversary as our reigning monarch

Peachland’s Queen’s Platinum Jubilee ceremony held recently in Heritage Park was an opportunity to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s 70 years on the throne.

Christine Limmer from the Lower Mainland was visiting Peachland overnight and came out to watch the procession of vintage British cars in the procession from the Peachland Legion to Heritage Park.

“It’s the end of and era,” she said. “There’s never going to be anyone like Queen Elizabeth II again.”

Bruce Klippenstein, the Okanagan town crier, led the way to the Rotary gazebo and cried a Canadian variation of a Platinum Jubilee proclamation recited by town criers across the commonwealth.

Maggie Brooks was waving her British flag during the ceremony, which also included greetings from local dignitaries and the singing of God Save the Queen.

Although she has lived in Peachland for 30 years, Brooks said a little bit of her heart is left in England.

“The queen is my hero,” she said. “She’s amazing.”

West Kelowna’s Carl Zanon reminisced about attending Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953 as a 16-year-old sea cadet from Nelson.

Zanon left around May 1 and was the first sea cadet on the train that travelled to Halifax and was joined by another 11 sea cadets representing other Canadian provinces along the way.

In Halifax Zanon and the other cadets sailed to the United Kingdom on the Second World War aircraft carrier Magnificent.

“It was a wonderful time to see the ship run,” recalled Zanon.

Upon arrival, Zanon was part of a group of 50 sea cadets from around the Commonwealth who took part in a 1,500-mile tour up the east coast and down the west coast of Great Britain.

On Coronation Day, the cadets were seated in view of Westminster Abbey so they could see the Queen arrive; however, Zanon volunteered to look after the needs of the military who lined the street so he could get closer and take a picture of the Queen in the golden chariot.

“As it turns out, we were ordered to salute, so I did a quick salute and then I got a good photograph of the golden carriage as it passed me by,” he said.

Zanon also saw the Coronation Naval Review in Portsmouth. during which Queen Elizabeth II inspected over 200 ships from onboard the HMS Surprise.

“They arranged the tide to be just right,” he said.

Phyllis Papineau, who was wearing vest with the pattern of the British flag, had been up at 1:30 a.m. to watch the Royal Jubilee celebrations broadcast live from London, which she called amazing.

“Isn’t it nice that Peachland is doing something,” she said.

Andy Heatherington, 98, who served in the air force in the Second World War, also attended the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee ceremony.

“I think it’s pretty good,” Heatherington said about Queen Elizabeth II’s 70-year reign. “That’s a pretty tough job.”

Rose Bedford and Aliya Wall check out some of Linda Lee Klippenstein's Royal memorabilia after the Queen's Platinum Jubilee ceremony. The girls are granddaughters of Judy Bedford, who attended the ceremony as a recipient of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee medal.

Bruce Klippenstein, the Okanagan Town Crier, leads the procession of dignitaries to the Rotary Plaza gazebo in Peachland's Heritage Park Thursday afternoon as part of Peachland's celebration of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee.

Maggie Brooks waves her British flag during Peachland's celebration of the Queen's Platinum Jubilee held at the Rotary Plaza gazebo in Heritage Park Thursday afternoon.

West Kelowna's Carl Zanon, who was a 16-year-old sea cadet from Nelson when he attended Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953, shows off some photos from the event.

Phyllis Papineau enjoys a slice of Platinum Jubilee cake on a bench beside one of the Platinum Jubilee flags at Heritage Park.