ATHABASCA — There are many ways to recognize people for their contributions to their community, but two local women have received something rare for their efforts.
Sherrie Breese, owner of Lolly Pop Thrift Shop and Mary Gislason, professional volunteer and community advocate, were chosen out of thousands of potential names by Lakeland MP Shannon Stubbs to receive the royal honour.
“I got nominated for a Jubilee pin and I got a letter from Shannon Stubbs office telling me I'm going to be receiving this and then it came in the mail,” Breese said.
The pin has the Royal Crown and Queen Elizabeth’s Royal Cypher, EIIR for Elizabeth II Regina, in the middle surrounded by seven groups of maple leaves with seven pearls all representing her seven decades as Queen of England and the Commonwealth. She ascended to the throne after her father, King George VI passed away Feb. 6, 1952, and her coronation took place June 2, 1953 at Westminster Abbey in London when she was 25 years old.
Hers was the last British coronation of the 20 Century and she was the longest reigning monarch of the United Kingdom when she passed away Sept. 8, 2022 at Balmoral Castle.
Before her passing however, was the celebration of her 70 years on the throne and the pin handed out by Members of Parliament across Canada was designed by the Canadian Heraldic Authority (CHA) which works under the Governor General of Canada, currently Mary Simon. CHA work includes the creation of arms, flags, and badges as well as recording historical emblems, approval of badges and flags of the Canadian Armed Forces, recording First Nations emblems and the promotion of Canadian heraldry and the staff are called heralds.
Heraldry has a long tradition having started in the Middle Ages to document and regulate the creation and use of a coat of arms or other symbols and the CHE was started in 1988 when Governor General Jeanne Sauvé was authorized to exercise Queen Elizabeth's powers related to heraldry in Canada.
Breese doesn’t know for sure who nominated her, but she has an idea, although she wouldn't make a public guess.
“They don’t list the accolades of what you did,” she said. “It’s based on volunteering.”
Queen Elizabeth was the first monarch to be named 'Queen of Canada' following the Royal Style and Titles Act passed in 1953 by the Canadian government reaffirming her role as separate from the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries.
With only 70 pins to be handed out by each MP, Stubbs potentially had 100,000 people living in the riding to choose from.
Gislason hasn’t quite gotten over the surprise of receiving the pin Dec. 9 so isn’t sure what she will do with it.
“I just couldn’t believe it,” Gislason said. “I’ll treasure it,” she said.
