Virginia legislators remember Queen Elizabeth II and her visit to the commonwealth

Shortly after he was sworn in as Virginia’s 70th governor, Tim Kaine reached out to Buckingham Palace.

The 400th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown, the nation’s first permanent English colony, was approaching and he hoped Queen Elizabeth II would attend the celebrations.

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“We welcomed her to Virginia for a few days and it was a magical visit,” Kaine said in a video statement released after the monarch’s death Thursday.

Kaine and other Virginia lawmakers offered memories, anecdotes and reactions in response to the queen’s death.

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Kaine, now a U.S. senator, said the queen was gracious while meeting with the crowds during the anniversary celebrations in May 2007.

But while her visit was intended to mark a joyous occasion, Virginia was reeling from a tragedy. Roughly three weeks prior, dozens were killed or injured during a mass shooting at Virginia Tech.

Kaine said he was struck by the queen’s compassion when she met with some survivors and victims’ families following a speech she gave at the General Assembly.

“She specifically asked if she could meet with family members who had been affected by that shooting,” he said. “The queen and (her husband Prince Phillip) could not have been more solicitous of them and it really, really meant something to them at a tough time.”

State Sen. Tommy Norment also said he was moved by the queen’s visit.

As the son of a World War II veteran, the Williamsburg Republican said he admired the queen for her efforts during the war. As a teen, she joined the British Army’s women’s branch and served as a driver and mechanic.

“Here was the princess, in line to be the next queen of England, out there driving a military truck around in a military uniform,” he said.

A lawyer and legislator, Norment said that he doesn’t generally experience social anxiety. But the senator — who was tasked with presenting the queen with a clay medallion as her commemoration gift — recalled being uncharacteristically nervous.

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“I sighed probably the biggest sigh of my life (when it was done),” he said, adding that it was an “extraordinary honor” to meet the queen.

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During a reception at the governor’s mansion, Norment said the queen displayed her sense of humor.

“One of the servers came up and said ‘Your majesty, would you like something to drink?’” Norment recalled. “She said ‘I would like a Dubonnet and gin — with lots of gin.’ It just cracked me up.”

Although Del. Shelly Simonds never met the queen, the Newport News Democrat said she had great respect for the monarch.

“She was a strong woman leader at a time when the world didn’t have many powerful woman,” she wrote. “In that aspect she was a trailblazer, demonstrating that a woman can be graceful and powerful at the same time.”

In a Thursday statement, Gov. Glenn Youngkin shared his condolences and praised the queen for the “steadfast compassion” she showed to the United States during times of crisis, such as the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

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“Virginians fondly remember Queen Elizabeth II’s many visits to the Commonwealth of Virginia,” he said. “As governor, the Queen’s consistent tenderness for the Commonwealth and Virginians will never be forgotten.”

Katie King, katie.king@virginiamedia.com