Queen bestows medal on visit coordinator

KIRSTEN MURPHY

The coordinator of the Queen’s visit to Iqaluit has been named to the Royal Victorian Order for the year of work she spent on the project.

Queen Elizabeth II personally bestowed the prestigious medal last week on Annette Bourgeois, press secretary to Premier Paul Okalik.
The exchange occurred behind closed doors at Inuksuk High School, immediately following an Arctic sport demonstration.

Bourgeois called her one-on-one conversation with the monarch a “personal and private” moment.

“It’s quite an honour. I knew there would be a gift but I was not expecting this. I had no idea,” said Bourgeois, who received an engraved watch from French Prime Minister Jacques Chiraq during his visit to Nunavut in 1999.

The Royal Victorian Order was founded in 1896 by Queen Victoria and recognizes Canadians who have demonstrated exemplary service to the Queen or members of the Royal family.

As a Member of the Victorian Order, Bourgeois will receive an invitation to attend a garden party at Buckingham Palace every four years. She may also add the initials MVO to items such as letterhead and business cards.

Approximately 105 Canadians have been named to the order.

Bourgeois spent the past year working with officials at Buckingham Palace and the federal department of Canadian Heritage to organize the two-and-a-half-hour Iqaluit visit.

The Nunavut trip was the first stop on the Queen’s 11-city Golden Jubilee tour across Canada this month.