‘The day I met the Queen’ – Lois looks back on an emotional day
It was a day Lois Chapman will never forget.
She was only 13 when she got to meet the Queen and the 2009 encounter wasn’t just a passing glimpse either.
Lois was chosen to hand Her Majesty a posy of flowers at the Stadium Metro station in Sunderland and she even got to exchange a few words with Queen Elizabeth II.
It was such a big day for Lois that she broke down in tears of happiness when it was all over.
Today, she re-lived an occasion she will ‘never forget’ after spotting a Sunderland Echo photo which we shared on social media this week.
It showed the Queen holding the flowers Lois had given her.
Lois, who lived in Pennywell and went to Academy 360 at the time, remembered how she was allowed to take one person with her on the day and her mam Denise went.
When she got there, Lois told the officials ‘I am here to give some flowers to the Queen’ and was led on to the station platform by dignitaries in advance of the Royal visitor’s arrival.
She remembered that she had to wait for Her Majesty’s train to arrive.
“Everyone was cheering and talking among themselves and I was alright at first,” she recalled.
"As it got closer, I got nervous and shaky and I was thinking ‘this is going to happen’.”
Lois was the last person who was introduced to the Queen and remembered: “She said ‘hello, how are you? Nice to meet you.
"When she left, I started crying with happiness.
"It was the most surreal experience.
"Now, when I say to people that I have met the Queen, they think I must have been in the crowd, but I have spoken to her.”
Lois was chosen for the honour for a very special reason.
From when she was 11 years old, she had volunteered at Pennywell Youth Project to help children with special needs.
She did it every Tuesday evening and Saturday morning without fail.
She was so devoted to volunteering that she won a Sunderland Achievers’ Award in 2009.
And then came a very special day. The youth project manager Gordon Langley got a phone call which asked if he knew of anyone who deserved to meet the Queen.
"He said ‘I know the perfect person and she is standing next to me’,” said Lois.
"I didn’t know what he was talking about at the time and
he kept it secret for ages. A couple of weeks before the visit happened, he said: “I have got a surprise for you.
"You are going to meet the Queen for all the hard work you have done’. I was really
shocked.
"I thought I would be standing at the front of a crowd. I didn’t expect to be standing on the platform waiting for her.
"They told me ‘you are going
to hand a posy to her when she gets off the train.
"It was the best experience I have had.”
Lois, 24, now lives in Grindon and works for Hays Travel in the head office. But she has never forgotten the day she met Her Majesty.
Have you ever got to meet the Queen and what do you remember of the occasion? Tell us more by emailing chris. cordner@jpimedia.co.uk