The passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, on 8^th September, 2022, left many within the community with a sense of loss, especially amongst our senior community members, who still refer to her as ‘Aapri Rani’.

But for Delnaz and Rohinton Marker it came as a surprise to see their 7-year-old daughter – Simone, being affected by the news the family was watching on the BBC channel, withdrew to her room and drew a portrait of the queen – as a silent tribute of a sensitive child.

Moved by this, Rohinton decided to send the portrait to King Charles III with a condolence letter. Knowing it would be one amongst thousands that the King received, the family forgot about the letter. That is, until the morning of 23^rd November, when they were received a thank you note from Buckingham Palace, emblazoned with the Royal Crest and addressed to Simone Marker and her family! The endearing photo of a young queen with Charles as a boy will find a place of pride in the Marker home!