SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) – On Saturday, members of Senior Citizens Inc. gathered for a once—or maybe twice—in a lifetime occasion: the Coronation of King Charles III. The group celebrated at the Learning Center with brunch, a watch party, and a historic presentation. 

“We are constantly paying attention to different chapters in history all over the world, European history, American history, and so on. But when there’s history that’s being made right in front of our eyes, we want to pay attention to that too,” said the center’s director, Roger Smith. 

For many people in attendance, the watch party brought up memories of the coronation of the late Queen Elizabeth II. 

“I think I was 7, maybe 8 years old and I watched it with my friend Donna Davies. She had a bigger TV than my TV. And we watched the coronation, and it was very powerful to me,” said Linda McWhorter. 

McWhorter, an art historian, says many people believe King Charles’ coronation should have come much sooner, but she admires the queen for fulfilling the life-long oath. 

“It was not something that the queen could possibly have walked away from. The ceremony is so powerful, the anointing is so special. And when you go through something like that, you can’t come out and say, ‘I’m going to give this up, I’m going to let my son take it.’ It’s a dedication that is so deep,” she said. 

For her the new King’s coronation not only brought up memories, but a new perspective. 

“Now when I look back on it, it was a different time. We’re in a completely different world now. England is different, the UK is so different, there’s so much diversity. I think it was interesting to see how Charles was able to rise to the occasion, bring that in, but keep the tradition that had been so long part of what he knew and grew up with,” McWhorter said.