“She possessed the great qualities of a born leader, infinite tact, great wisdom, and a wide vision, crowned with a keen sense of humour. No detail of our work was too small, and nothing too large to command her careful consideration. Never too busy to listen, she would remind us that it is the little things that create differences, in the big things of life we are one.” Mary Burgess, the Norfolk Federation’s first Secretary wrote this of Lady Evelyn Suffield, our first Chairman. It struck me that the words are more than pertinent for our late Queen.
Our association with the Royal Family is long and proud. The federation was formed in 1919, with the encouragement of Queen Mary. Since then four members of the Royal Family have been Norfolk WI members.
Queen Mary wrote to Lady Suffield to ask if a WI could be formed at Sandringham and their first meeting was in March 1919, when both Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary joined. The Queen Mother and the Queen also became members, and the tradition continues with both the Queen Consort and the Duchess of Wessex having joined their local WIs.
Her Majesty was a great supporter of the WI movement as a whole.
In 2015, to celebrate the National Federation’s centenary, she held a garden party at Buckingham Palace for WI members.
A total of 211 members from Norfolk attended and it is an event none will forget. That same year she was guest of honour at the National Annual Meeting in the Royal Albert Hall, accompanied by the Princess Royal and the Duchess of Wessex. The WI’s anthem is Jerusalem and is traditionally sung at the start of the meeting.
To hear more than 4,000 women sing Jerusalem is spine-tingling. The Queen arrived after the start of that meeting, having missed the earlier rendition, and asked if it could be sung again. Naturally, the answer was yes!
Much has been written about the late Queen’s belief in tradition, but she also recognised the need to modernise and be relevant to the changing world around her. The WI holds those same philosophies - we value the importance of tradition, whilst embracing change and being pertinent to the world as it is now, some 107 years after our formation.
In 2015, Her Majesty said: "Women have been granted the vote, British women have climbed Everest for the first time and the country has elected its first female prime minister. The Women's Institute has been a constant throughout, gathering women together, encouraging them to acquire new skills and nurturing unique talents."
For so many of our members here in Norfolk, Her Majesty has been a constant throughout their lives. In an echo of her remarks at the 2015 National Annual Meeting she, too, has gathered women together, encouraged everyone to acquire new skills, and nurture unique talents.
She led by example. For instance, during lockdowns holding Zoom meetings – a skill so many of us had to learn. We might initially have been reluctant but seeing The Queen using technology inspired us to overcome our reservations. So, the federation held their board and committee meetings by Zoom and numerous Norfolk WIs held their monthly meetings remotely, using their new-found technical skills.
We feel a profound sense of loss and sadness at the Queen’s death. Inevitably, there will be change as a result. We cannot halt change, but we can and must accept it, however hard it feels at this moment.
At our federation annual meeting next year, Norfolk WI members will sing loudly and proudly “God Save the King.”
Contact us at admin@norfolkwi.org.uk
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