Queen Silvia celebrates “Day of the Ancients” in Ekerö

Queen Silvia celebrated “The Day of the Ancients” on Wednesday in Ekerö. The Queen met with local citizens during the event and enjoyed a sunny late August day of music and conversation at Ekebyhov’s castle park.

Older residents of the community, along with their relatives, took in a festive picnic atmosphere during which Queen Silvia was given the opportunity to meet and greet with many of the crowd. During a video shared on the Swedish royal family’s website, The Queen smiled warmly as she shook hands and chatted with participants. For the event, she wore her traditional hometown dress, the Lovöd costume, and was pictured holding a bright pink rose.

Attendees also were able to meet two special furry friends: dogs Bellman and Othello. These support animals are used to help improve elderly patients’ quality of life and make visits to play, exercise and interact with those who cannot be at home to experience the comfort of a pet.

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I dag besökte Drottningen ”De gamlas dag” som har firats årligen sedan 1998 efter ett initiativ av Drottningen. De första åren firades dagen i Drottningholmsparken och sedan år 2000 svarar Ekerö kommun för arrangemanget. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Under dagen bjöds deltagarna på picknick under vilken Drottningen fick möjlighet att hälsa på kommunens äldre invånare och deras anhöriga. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Underhållningen stod Kalle Moreus, Johanna Moreus, Benneth Fagerlund och Silviahemmets kör för. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Av tradition bär Drottningen sin hembygdsdräkt, Lovödräkten, vid besöket på ”De gamlas dag”. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ?: Sara Friberg/Kungl. Hovstaterna

A post shared by Kungahuset (@kungahuset) on Aug 28, 2019 at 8:35am PDT

The day’s musical entertainment included Benneth Fagerlund, Johanna Moreus, Kalle Moreus, and Silvia’s Choir, and the event culminated with everyone gathering to sing the Swedish national anthem.

“The Day of the Ancients” has been celebrated since 1998 following an initiative by The Queen. The first several years were held in Drottningholmsparken and since 2000 Ekerö municipality has been responsible for the annual event.

Working with the elderly and dementia patients is a strong passion for The Queen, as her late mother suffered from dementia. She chairs The Silviahemmet Foundation, which promotes scientific research and offers education, specialised training, and care in the field of dementia. This includes the Silvia Nurse programme, which gives nurses the “Silvia Nurse” title after completing a series of courses in dementia. These classes explore the nurse’s role in helping patients and families in dealing with this disease.

Queen Silvia also is working with furniture giant IKEA to help build affordable housing for dementia patients, as Royal Central reported earlier this month.