The first Victoria Trefoil Guild of Girl Guides of Canada and The Royal Commonwealth Society of Vancouver Island held a special ceremony at Oak Bay’s Windsor Park Rose Garden to honour the late Queen Elizabeth II on the afternoon of Sept. 29.
The event included the planting of two symbolic rose bushes, a Queen Elizabeth rose and a Peace rose, each representing values Queen Elizabeth embodied during her reign, said event organizer Margaret Lidkea.
Lidkea explained that the flowers chosen for the event were intentionally selected for their strong symbolic significance and connection to Queen Elizabeth.
The Queen Elizabeth rose was specially developed to honour the monarch, while the Peace rose symbolized the Queen’s lifelong dedication to promoting peace across the Commonwealth.
Lidkea emphasized the significance of the Peace rose, noting its impact on the horticultural world and its symbolic alignment with the Queen’s values.
“I really felt she was… a person of peace rather than being a person that encouraged a lot of war and hatred,” Lidkea said. “She was very much a girl guide when she was younger and she held all those girl guide principles very well during her reign.”
Girl Guides from various age groups helped plant the roses alongside Oak Bay Councillor Hazel Brathwaite and David Spence, president of the Royal Commonwealth Society Vancouver Island.
A brass plaque was placed next to the rose bushes to commemorate the occasion.
