It was a day of firsts in Cayman, with the islands’ new governor hosting a parade and garden party to mark the first official birthday of the United Kingdom’s new king, Charles III.
The morning began with a parade of Cayman’s uniformed services outside Governor Jane Owen’s residence, Government House, on West Bay Road, watched by invited guests and members of the public who sat in the shade under tents on either side of the road.
In a ceremony following the inspection of the guard by the governor, she presented medals and badges to nine people for their services to the Cayman Islands.
Cindy Scotland, managing director of the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority since 2002, became an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for her contributions to Cayman’s financial services industry.
British Empire Medals were awarded to Susan Horrocks, director and conductor of the Cayman National Choir and founder and director of the Cayman National Orchestra for her services to the arts; Reina Jefferson, public relations officer, founding member and former president of the Cayman Islands Early Childhood Association, for her services to literacy and education; and Claira Range, deputy director of Fairbanks Women’s Prison and director of Eagle House Rehabilitation Centre, for her services to the prison service and to the wider community.
The governor also presented Cayman Islands Certificates and Badges of Honour to Christopher Murray, founder of mentorship group Boyz2Men for services to at-risk youth; to Edgar Ashton Bodden for his public service; to Chevala Burke for her services to government and the wider community; and to champion swimmer Jordan Crooks for world-class achievement in swimming, whose father Jimmy Crooks accepted the award on his behalf.
The parade and awards ceremony were carried out in intense heat, which proved a bit too much for some participants. A number of those taking part in the parade and salutes fainted or needed assistance during the morning’s ceremony. Red Cross volunteers said about 25 individuals were taken to their tent for treatment because of the heat.
Among the parade contingents this year were the RCIPS, the Cayman Islands Regiment, the Fire Service, the Prison Service, the Coast Guard, the Girls’ Brigade, the Scouts and Cub Scouts, the Cadet Corps and the Seventh Day Adventist Pathfinders.
On to the garden party
This year, there were several hours between the parade and the garden party on the governor’s lawn, which began at 4pm.
For the afternoon tea party, ladies in colourful dresses, hats and fascinators, and gentlemen in shirts or lightweight suits, descended on Government House, where wait staff moved around with trays of British culinary treats, such as sausage rolls, mini banoffee pies, egg sandwiches and quiches.
Owen welcomed the guests, saying it was a “huge pleasure” to see so many people from Cayman present, and she congratulated all those who had received honours earlier in the day.
She said, “This is, of course, our first opportunity to have a celebration in honour of His Majesty King Charles. I was at the coronation with the honourable premier [Wayne Panton], which was a real privilege.”
She said, when she and the premier spoke to the king, he told them he remembered fondly his 2019 visit to Cayman, especially visiting all three islands, Jasmine hospice, and meeting Peter the blue iguana at the Botanic Park.
“So, of course, we said, ‘Well, you must come back’, and I really hope that King Charles will come back at some stage in the not too distant future,” Owen said.
She added, “But he also talked about the importance of this great relationship that we share together, the United Kingdom and Cayman.”
“Before I came here,” she said, “a lot of people talked to me about the relationship, and, I think, until you get here, you can’t quite … imagine the special qualities of Cayman. And those are the qualities that I see … in you standing here today.”
Those qualities, she said, included “respect for each other, the sort of discipline that we saw in everyone who was involved in the parade this morning, the pride in the country, all of you who are working to build the economy, to protect and create sustainable solutions for these beautiful islands, to protect your traditions, and create the new art and culture that is coming out of Cayman these days, the sort of light you see in the eyes of the school children and the university students that I’ve seen when I’ve been to the awards ceremonies.
“You know, it is something quite special that you have here.”
Among those at the gathering was the UK Minister of the Armed Forces James Heappey, who was on a brief visit to Cayman and departed on a flight shortly after the garden party ended. Owen said Heappey had been in Cayman to discuss hurricane preparedness, and had met with the Coast Guard, regiment and police while on island.
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