Big Lunch at St. David’s adds Royal purple to historic celebration

At 11:30am on May 7, the skirl of bagpipes will signal the start of St. David’s Church Coronation Big Lunch.   

The Tsawwassen event will add purple to its red, white and blue decoration, figuratively joining the tens of thousands of other Coronation Big Lunches across the UK and abroad, set to bring celebratory communities together the day after His Majesty King Charles III and Her Majesty Queen Consort Camilla are crowned in Westminster Abbey.  

The Big Lunch experience is an unique phenomenon that now has twofold significance, for its patron since 2013 – HRH Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall – is now HM The Queen Consort.

In the cul-de-sac of 51A Street, this historic occasion will be officially underway when honoured guests and program participants are piped to the platform by piper George Panagiotou of Simon Fraser University’s Robert Malcolm Memorial Pipe Band. Mr. Ian Paton, MLA for Delta South; and Mr. Dylan Kruger, City of Delta Councillor; will be introduced by MC Anthony Hanna, after which soloist Rosemary Gahr and accompanist Allen Desnoyers will lead the singing of Canada’s National Anthem, O Canada, and the Royal Anthem, God Save the King. The Rev. Simbarashe Basvi will bless the food, made ready for a gathering seated at Big-Lunch-style long tables.                         

Barbecue, salads, desserts, and cutting of celebratory Coronation cake will proceed a program that includes, The Royal Tribute, Salutations, British folk music and, for the youngsters, face-painting and rock painting activities.

Annually, since St. David’s held its first Big Lunch in 2012, the parish has continued (barring COVID) to embrace the Eden Project vision of community and friendship. Coming together to meet and greet over a meal can lead people to doing “far beyond anything we can ask for or imagine”. 

From the singing of the Anthems ‘till the last rock is painted red, white and blue, the Coronation Big Lunch in South Delta is destined to be a day to remember. 

IMAGES

• Allen Desnoyers revives British folksongs for Big Lunch songsters. Pictured are Mary Savage, Christine Sanders, Rosemary Gahr, Anne Thomas, Anne Lyon & Mary Horton. Photo by Loy Yeo
• Rock painting gets test run by crafts facilitator Ngaire Meadows. Photo by Loy Yeo