Ian Kleinsasser is an English teacher at the Crystal Spring Colony near Ste. Agathe, MB and his article Red Mittens for the Queen offers a plausible explanation of how Queen Elizabeth II of England visited a Manitoba Hutterite community as part of her 1970 Manitoba Centennial Celebration tour. 
This story began in January or February of 1969, approximately one year before Queen Elizabeth II visited Manitoba. On a snowy winter day, a middle-aged Hutterite woman known as Hans-Rebecca from the Rainbow Hutterite community was knitting two pairs of red mittens. When people inquired who would receive these mittens, Hans-Rebecca replied, “These are not normal mittens. I am knitting these for Queen Elizabeth II.” 
When Hans-Rebecca finished the mittens, she packaged them up and, just like that, sent them off across the Atlantic Ocean to Buckingham Palace. A month later, an official-looking envelope landed on Hans-Rebecca’s table from one of the Queen’s ladies-in-waiting: “Queen Elizabeth normally does not accept personal gifts from people, but this will be an exception.” 
The letter said Queen Elizabeth II wanted to visit a Hutterite Community in Manitoba in 1970. The lady-in-waiting thanked Hans-Rebecca for the two pairs of mittens and noted that the Queen wanted her to know that she would make great use of them for her children. 
So, when Queen Elizabeth II visited Manitoba in 1970, one of the places she requested to see was a Hutterite community in Manitoba. Unfortunately, though Hans-Rebecca may have instigated the Queen’s visit with her thoughtful gift, she never met Queen Elizabeth. Only young people, Diene (girls) and Buem (boys), went to see the Queen at the Milltown Colony near Elie, MB.  
Kleinsasser said Hans-Rebecca’s story offers a plausible account of why Queen Elizabeth II requested a tour of a Hutterite community in Manitoba. However, the story doesn’t tell how the visit came about from a political or organizational perspective, i.e., who pulled the political strings to make it happen?  
One media report indicated then Manitoba Premier Edward Schreyer played an essential role in facilitating the visit to the Milltown Hutterite community.  
Kleinsasser said what prompted him to write and post the entire article after seeing all the tributes people posted about the Queen; it started him thinking about the 1970 visit when Queen Elizabeth visited a Hutterite colony.  
“Why on earth did the Queen request to visit a Hutterite colony, especially of all the different cultural groups in Manitoba?”  

He reached out to several people including a Hutterite history Telegram group that shares stories about Hutterite history in North America—asking people what they remembered about the Queen’s visit. Several people responded with anecdotes. One story focused on Elizabeth and her red mittens answering the question, “How did the Queen know about Hutterites?”  
Something perked her interest to request a visit.  
“That story offered a very plausible premise for making the assumption this most likely prompted her to request a visit when she came here in 1970.” 
As Kleinsasser wrote the piece an article appeared with Premiere Ed Schreyer’s comment about the Queen’s visit and how her request took them by surprise.  
“This is not something planned but she sprung this on them.” 
The initial contact appeared to have occurred with the Rosedale Colony and they couldn’t accommodate it in that short time near Elie, MB. So that’s when they chose the Milltown Colony and showed up with buckets of paint, touched up some of the buildings and made everything look presentable.  
Initially scheduled as a 20-minute stopover but became a 45-minute visit where security went from tight until the Queen waved them off. Then, the security people disappeared into the background, and the Queen relaxed and walked about, chatting with people and touring buildings in the community.  
When Queen Elizabeth’s party finally left the Milltown Hutterite community and returned to the Elie train station, many Hutterites followed behind to watch the royal train leave. Queen Elizabeth II stood as the train pulled away from the Elie station and waved a final farewell to the cheering crowd gathered on the Canadian National Railway platform. 
“We may never know whether two pairs of homemade red mittens brought Queen Elizabeth to request a visit to a Manitoba Hutterite community in 1970, but she came to visit.”  
Kleinsasser concluded, “We mourn the passing of a remarkable person, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. God Be with You till We Meet Again.” •
— By Harry Siemens/Ian Kleinsasser