NEW ORLEANS (WGNO)— If you’ve seen Margarita Bergen around New Orleans, she always wears hats. With a collection of more than 300, she says Queen Elizabeth II herself inspired her to wear these beautiful fashion statements.
“She made wearing hats more fashionable than ever,” Bergen told WGNO’s Kenny Lopez.
On Monday, she watched from home as thousands gathered to celebrate Her Majesty’s life across the lake.
“So sad. So solemn. I love all the pomp of saying goodbye to the Queen,” Bergen explained. “I was very lucky and honored to attend her jubilee. I’ve never met her, but I could see her from a distance.
Bergen feels a connection to the royal family because she attended the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in February, marking the 70th year of Elizabeth’s reign. The highlight of the royal jubilee for Bergen was seeing the queen’s son, the man who would become king.
“King Charles. I always had a crush on him when he was an eligible bachelor,” she said.
Bergen has been to England 12 times and says watching the funeral made her reflect on Queen Elizabeth’s incredible legacy.
“I admire that sense of responsibility, that sense of duty. For me, as a woman, I always admire all women in power,” she said.
In honor of the Queen, Bergen made an altar with orchids and rose petals and the flag she received from the Royal Jubilee. But now that the queen’s reign is over, she feels like crying.
“I am devastated. She’s been a queen for as long as I’ve known,” she said.
After Monday’s funeral, Queen Elizabeth will make her final journey from Westminster Abbey to Windsor, where she will be buried with her husband, Prince Philip, who died last year.
https://www.wkrg.com/state-regional/new-orleans-socialite-who-attended-royal-jubilee-remembers-queen-elizabeth-ii/
