In our June edition we broke with our normal practice of showing some local scene on the front page and instead put there a picture of Queen Elizabeth II. That month there were many celebrations of her Platinum Jubilee in our area, as there were across the country. Little did we think that within a few months we would be marking her death. Although given her age and increasing frailty we knew it would not be far off, it was still a shock if not a surprise when it happened. As many have pointed out, you have to be at the least in your late seventies to have any memory at all of the time before she came to the throne (although that demographic is well represented in this area). This country has changed immeasurably during her reign and she has been a constant, steadying presence, described as a rock, an anchor or a beacon. Her steadiness, dedication and sense of duty throughout her long life were sustained by her strong Christian faith. The world now seems a different place without her and never can it be said more truly that we shall not see her like again. God save the King.
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