Mitzvah Day celebrates Coronation with interfaith tea and food collection

More than 150 people came together at Rosslyn Hill Unitarian Church in north London to participate in a Mitzvah Day Coronation Tea in support of the Big Help Out.  

The two-hour tea party and food collection featured a performance from the Barnet SACRE Interfaith Choir, whose theme song We Can All Get Along summed up the ethos of the day.

Participants – including Mayor of Camden Nasim Ali and Board of Deputies vice president Amanda Bowman – learnt about various volunteer opportunities in Camden and signed pledges of commitment.

They also brought and collected food for the Queen’s Crescent Community Association (QCCA), which helps people in need in Camden’s most deprived neighbourhood.

Mitzvah Day CEO Stuart Diamond said: “This special day provided a fantastic opportunity for people come together to give their time and make a difference to a local charity. The Big Help Out Coronation Tea also introduced people to social action, to their neighbours and to local charities, setting up future projects to address real needs. We look forward to hosting individuals and communities again on Mitzvah Day on Sunday 19 November.”

Foyezur Miah, CEO of QCCA, added: ‘It was great to be part of this lovely event on such a memorable weekend. I think everyone in the voluntary sector is delighted that King Charles put volunteering at the heart of his coronation, because charities like ours can’t survive without volunteers.”

The Big Help Out, which took place over Coronation weekend, is a huge public engagement campaign to promote, champion and showcase volunteering.

The event at Rosslyn Hill Unitarian Church took place alongside other volunteering initiatives from faith communities across the UK including a beach clean led by the Archbishop of Wales, an interfaith community gardening project in Northern Ireland and hot food preparation and service at the Central Gurdwara London, among many others.

Reverend Kate Dean of Rosslyn Hill Unitarian Church said: “Our spiritual community exists to enable people to connect with one another and to explore what life is all about. It was great to host an event where people could find out more about the volunteering opportunities in their local area and make new friends from different faiths and backgrounds.”