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The hundreds of Paddington bear stuffies left in tribute to the late Queen are being donated to charity. After the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, supporters and admirers of the Queen left more than a thousand Paddington bear stuffed animals and other teddy bears outside of Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, and in royal parks across London. Now all those stuffed bears are being collected and given to a UK children’s charity.
The late Queen became associated with Paddington bear, a character from a popular children’s book, when an animated version of the bear was featured in a video during celebrations earlier this year of the Queen’s 70th year on the throne. In the video, the Queen is having afternoon tea with Paddington and discussing their shared love for marmalade sandwiches.
Buckingham Palace and the royal parks announced this past weekend their intention to donate the bears to charity. They plan to have the stuffies professionally cleaned before being donated to the children’s charity, Barnado’s. The Queen was a patron of the organization for over 30 years until she passed the position over to her son Charles’ wife Camilla, in 2016. Barnado’s CEO Lynn Perry says they’re honored to receive the donation. “We promise to look after these bears who will be well-loved and bring joy to the children we support,” Perry says.
Source: AP News