HARWICH’S new mayor threw kitchels to crowds of delighted children as part of the town’s traditional mayor-making ceremony.
Pam Morrison followed in the footsteps of her late husband Andy, a former Harwich Town Council mayor who passed away in 2012.
As mayor, he had the honour of welcoming the Queen to the town in 2004.
“It’s a really emotional day for me,” said Mrs Morrison.
“I will take a lot of how I deal with my role as mayor from Andy, who was Harwich born and bred.
“I may have not been born here, but when I came I found this wonderful close-knit community.
“It was really nice to be able to put some roots down, and when I lost my husband I realised what a special place this is and how well loved he was.”
Mrs Morrison added: “I have been the support act three times and now I’m going in for the real thing – and I will bring a little bit of experience as a councillor to the role.”
Mrs Morrison steps into the shoes of fellow Harwich town councillor Dave McLeod, who said he had been honoured to have been mayor on five occasions.
After speeches, the new mayor marched in her splendid robes to St Nicholas’ Church for a special service yesterday, before taking part in the unique custom of kitchel-throwing.
She threw the sweet buns to a crowd of 120 schoolchildren gathered outside the historic Guildhall.
The buns are thrown to excited youngsters below as part of a historic tradition dating back more than 400 years.
Councillor John Brown was elected as deputy mayor for the coming year.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here