Golden gift to mark anniversary
Thursday, 23 October 2008
Bushmills couple Brian and Angela Willis with the pair of Galantas Irish 18 carat gold earrings made from Northern Ireland’s only working gold mine near Omagh.
After spending five decades with someone, it can be difficult to come up with thoughtful and original gift ideas to celebrate birthdays and anniversaries.
However, a Bushmills man has recently went the extra mile to get his wife the prefect present to mark their 50th wedding anniversary, whisking her by helicopter to a gold mine, to let her pick her perfect gift.
Brian Willis, and his wife Angela, will celebrate their Golden anniversary in November. After watching a television programme, the couple discovered that the only working gold mine in the UK is located in Northern Ireland, in the Sperrin Mountains, near Omagh.
Angela suggested that a gold nugget from the mine would be the ideal present for their anniversary, and Brian was inspired to plan their gold-mining adventure.
Angela described the surprise trip as a wonderful day.
She said: "It was memorable. Brian worked so hard to put it all together which is why I am so glad it worked out well."
Following weeks of planning, the surprise trip began with a mid-morning break at the Bushmills Inn, followed by a helicopter ride to the Irish, Canadian and UK owned Galantas gold mine at Cavanacaw near Omagh.
The helicopter landed at a specially created on-site heli-pad, and the couple were greeted by members of staff, who helped make their day even more memorable.
Wearing hard hats and wellington boots, the pair enjoyed a tour of the site, courtesy of the mine manager, and were able to watch the huge 50 tonne diggers removing the ore, before it is separated in the milling machines.
Angela was full of praise for the treatment they received during their visit.
She said: " We were really impressed that the manager would take that much time out of his day for a couple of old people like us."
The gold mined at Cavanacaw is microscopic, and the concentrated material is then sent to Canada, where it is smelted. Only a small amount is made into jewellery.
Gift
Brian and Angela's visit culminated with Brian giving his wife a pair of Galantas Irish 18 carat gold earrings, which had been made from ore mined at the site.
The couple also took home a small piece of material bored out of the mine, which is 500 million years old and was extracted from 1500ft below the ground.
