At this sad and historic time our thoughts are with the people of the U.K. as the world mourns the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.

Each year we remember our friends in the U.K. at an annual clock winding ceremony at which a representative from Great Britain makes the trip to the U.S. to commemorate the friendship and communication between the two nations. The tradition began in 1948 when John Rigby and Sons, Ltd. of Manchester, England, presented the Wire Association with a 400-day grandfather clock at its Annual Convention. The gesture, which represented a group of 32 companies from the U.K., was made in appreciation of the support given by the U.S. wire industry to Great Britain during World War II.

While saddened we are reminded of our strong and lasting connection to our friends in the U.K. and, in doing so, we acknowledge the inevitability of the passage of time.