Father Is Recognized by the Queen
Now that the war was over, Queen Elizabeth wished to honor those who had displayed outstanding effort and unusual courage during the war. My father received an invitation to a banquet to be given by the Queen herself at Buckingham Palace.
My father called a lawyer friend of his. “Hello, John,” he said, “maybe you can help me. I need some information.”
“Sure, Michael. What’s it all about?”
“I just received an invitation from Queen Elizabeth. She is making a banquet in Buckingham Palace to honor those who demonstrated outstanding effort and courage during the war. I was chosen to participate as a result of my work in producing war munitions. Tell me, John, what do I have to do when I come in the presence of the Queen?”
“You don’t say! Why, that’s beautiful! Wish I could be there with you. Let me look up the protocol, and I’ll get back to you.”
John called back not long after. “It’s like this, Michael. You approach her slowly, reverently. When you get close enough, you go down on one knee before her and kiss her hand. There is no way out of it, Michael. That’s the way it’s done.”
My father was relieved. “Thank you for the information, John. I guess this time I will have to forgo the honor.”
My father wrote a beautiful letter to the Queen, telling her how proud and happy he was to have been chosen for this great honor. Then he graciously declined the invitation to the Royal Palace by fabricating a tale of illness. For years my mother kept the royal invitation to the banquet as a memento of their years in England. Unfortunately, during one of their many moves, it got lost.
Although he did not attend the banquet, he was still awarded honorary citizenship. On January 7, 1948, my father and mother became naturalized British citizens, and they received an official certificate of naturalization. (My siblings and I did not need to undergo naturalization, since we were British citizens by virtue of the fact that we were born there.) Years later this honor would be instrumental for my father in obtaining U.S. citizenship for himself and the family.
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