Nelson farewells the Queen in style
Nelson said goodbye and thank you to Queen Elizabeth II in a service on Saturday which included bagpipes, songs, and the scattering of rose petals into water as a form of personal remembrance.
Hundreds turned out for the service in Christ Church Cathedral, which included speeches by Nelson MP Rachel Boyack in absentia via her husband Scott Mayer, Nelson mayor Rachel Reese and Tasman mayor Tim King.
Eleven-year-old Hunter Grooby was one of the youngest who attended. He thought it was ‘‘well-organised’’.
His mum Katrina Grooby said Hunter had recorded the funeral to watch later and had an interest in history.
Hunter’s sister Abby, 12, sang as part of the Nelson Youth Choir, so it was sort of a ‘‘two-for-one’’ hearing the performance and watching the service, she said.
Reese’s speech ran through the occasions when the Queen visited Nelson in 1954, 1963, 1974, and 1986 and her activities while she was here.
‘‘I know I felt, and so many of you will too, that she was a dependable force, someone whom you could rely on to always be there, a voice of calm, a voice of reason, someone who would never let us down. She was a constant presence, a lighthouse in a storm.’’
King referenced the phenomenal queues that reached 8 kilometres long to see the Queen lying in state. ‘For people of all walks of life and from all over the world to say goodbye and thank you is testament to the genuine love and appreciation felt by so many. It was unprecedented, and I believe we will never see this level of gratitude and respect for a single individual again.’’
The Very Reverend Dr Graham O’Brien said representatives from the armed forces, fire, ambulance, police, scouts, sea scouts and cadets attended.
Moving from the Queen to a new monarch was a significant change in people’s lives, he said.
‘‘It’s important to mark that occasion because actually, we’ve all been part of this period of history. It’s right that we have a chance to respond.’’