Thursday evening, June 6, will be recorded as the date of the biggest party ever held in Anguilla to mark the Official Birthday of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, now 93 years.
The event, held in the spacious courtyard and shelter of the Combined Services Building at the Clayton J. Lloyd International Airport, was organised and held by the Governor’s Office which invited the large number of persons to the formal occasion.
Tables with food and drink, as well as the invited guests, were easily accommodated in a substantial portion of the sheltered space which serves as a garage for the modern and expensive fire tenders which have significantly upgraded the airport. There is also a just completed and paved expansive courtyard which provided additional space for the overwhelming crowd.
The Combined Services Building was funded by the Governments of the United Kingdom and Anguilla and will be formally opened shortly. It provides extensive space for a Fire Hall, offices and living-quarters for on-duty Fire Officers. Perched on the third floor is a modern Air Traffic Control Tower – another forerunner to the planned expansion of the airport.
With the holding of the Queen’s Birthday Party at this venue, it is believed that other public functions will also be accommodated there, in due course.
The invited party guests were welcomed by His Excellency the Governor, Mr. Timothy Foy, OBE, with his wife, Dr. Dina Foy, and the Honourable Acting Premier, Mr. Curtis Richardson, the substantive Minister of Infrastructure, at his side.
Governor Foy said in part: “Throughout the many, many years, Her Majesty has always shown the qualities, the service and leadership that earned the respect…The fact is that the respect and gratitude that she has won has not simply been because of status or her position, but for the practical demonstration of simply being very good at what she does – and we call to learn a lot from that.
“Those of you who have glasses, I will ask you to raise them now in two toasts, if I may. The first is to Her Majesty, The Queen – God bless her; and the second is to her most loyal and resilient subjects – the great people of the Rock of Anguilla.”
Acting Premier and Minister Curtis Richardson said: “Firstly, I would just like to say that we celebrate with Her Majesty this her 93rd birthday which is a lot of years. Seventy years are promised to us – which is a long life – so she is living a long life and we want to celebrate that milestone with her.
“In every relationship there are challenges but smart people don’t look at the negatives within their relationships. Smart people look within their relationships for the benefits and the strengths that they gather over the years. I am happy, as the Acting Premier in Anguilla, for the relationship that we have had with Her Majesty’s Government – and for the strengths and benefits that we, as a people, have had over the years.
“I would like to make a toast to her and to us, the people of Anguilla. Cheers.”
The addresses were followed by a flag ceremony, the continuation of the Queen’s Birthday Party and the intermingling of the milling crowd.
Meanwhile, next Monday, June 17, will be a public holiday – in Anguilla -also marking the Official Birthday of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second.
