Queen Mary welcomed two special visitors to the front door of Frederik VIII’s Palace on Friday, becoming the first person in Denmark to purchase tickets for the Lillebror Lottery.
The Danish queen, who serves as the patron of the Børnehjælpsdagen (Children’s Aid Day Foundation), received Caroline and Oskar, two children affiliated with youth clubs supported by the foundation, and Sofie Hugo, the director of the Children’s Aid Day Foundation at Amalienborg.
The Lillebror Lottery marks its 100th anniversary this year, and youth groups and associations take part to raise funds for their organisations. According to the Children’s Aid Day Foundation website, their half of the funds “goes directly to supporting children and young people in care in Denmark.”
Queen Mary has served as the Foundation’s royal patron since 2005; before that, Queen Ingrid served as royal patron for 52 years until her death in 2000. The Danish Royal Court shared photos of Queen Ingrid and Queen Margrethe also receiving children from the Lillebror Lottery in 1975 and 1982.
On the Children’s Aid Day Foundation Facebook page, Oskar and Caroline shared their reactions to meeting Queen Mary. Oskar said, “I’m really proud that I was allowed to visit the Queen, who bought the first lottery tickets of the year from me.”
Caroline said, “We sell lottery tickets to earn money for our community, but it also means a lot that we help other children. Standing here at the Royal House today on the 100th anniversary is very special.”
