Queen Elizabeth II mourned, celebrated by emigres in Schuylkill County

Sep. 20—Jillian Weaver set her alarm clock for 4:30 a.m. Monday to ensure she'd be up in time to watch the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on television.

Ruling for 70 years, Britain's longest reigning monarch, the queen died Sept. 8 at age 96. At the time of her death, she was the world's oldest monarch.

The state funeral for the queen of the United Kingdom and its Commonwealth realms was broadcast starting at 5:30 a.m. Monday to American audiences.

At 11:30 a.m., six hours after the broadcast began, Weaver was still glued to the television in her Pottsville home as Britain buried Elizabeth with all the regalia and pageantry befitting its beloved monarch.

"It's magnificent," said Weaver, 77, who was born in England. "I've never seen anything like it in my life."

Fox News reported that the funeral, watched by 4.1 billion people around the world, could potentially be the most watched event in television history.

It was expected to surpass the number of people who viewed the funerals of President John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr. and Princess Diana, the queen's daughter-in-law.

PBS reported that 250,000 mourners, some standing in line for 24 hours, viewed the queen's flag-draped casket as it lay in state at Westminster Hall before being moved to Westminster Abbey for the funeral.

Michael Polak, who emigrated from England to America 50 years ago, lowered the Union Jack to half-staff outside his Wayne Twp. home. He's impressed that the state police installation in the township had done the same.

Polak watched the funeral for an hour or so before going to work at Recon Construction Services in York, where he is an executive. He taped the rest of the service.

"The queen is the head of the Church of England," Polak said. "I was impressed that the service included Catholic, Methodist and clergy of many faiths."

Noticing King Charles III's eyes welling during the service for his mother, Polak, too, shed a tear as the voices of the Choir of Westminster Abbey rang through the cavernous cathedral.

"She was queen to the rest of us," he said. "But to Charles, she was his mother."

Weaver, who's been in mourning since the queen's death, said she was an 8-year-old in Ipswich, a port town in England, when Elizabeth was crowned on June 2, 1953.

"We didn't have television back then," she recalled. "We watched her coronation on the newsreel in a movie theater."

Weaver found viewing the queen's crown, scepter and orb particularly emotional. Symbols of her monarchy, they will be placed on red pillows atop the altar in Westminster Abbey until the coronation of King Charles III next year.

Weaver met her husband, Victor Weaver, when he was stationed at a U.S. Air Force base in England in 1964. They were married in England and then moved to the U.S., but they have retained connections to her motherland.

Weaver, who recently returned from an extended stay in England for her sister's 80th birthday, was particularly proud of the respect shown to the queen by the British people.

"I've never seen such dedication in my life," she said, her voice filled with emotion. "It's unbelievable."

In a Facebook message to her family abroad, Weaver wrote: "To my British family, God Bless upon the loss of Queen Elizabeth II. She will go down as a wonderful and magnificent monarch."

Polak, 70, was born in England in 1952, the year Elizabeth II became queen after the death of her father, King George VI.

He discounts criticism from some quarters that it's time for Great Britain to set aside the monarchy, saying he hopes it will continue as a hallmark of the nation's heritage.

Noting that America has been a welcoming place to him, Polak celebrated the shared history of the U.S. and the United Kingdom.

The interest in the queen's passing shown on this side of the pond, Polak said, underscores a widespread belief among many Americans that England is still viewed as the mother country.

Contact the writer: rdevlin@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6007