by Lou Tribus

In 1968, not long after the US presidential elections that brought Richard Nixon to the White House, my father was appointed to be the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Science and Technology.  This was an exciting transition for the whole family, from university professor to government official; from small town to Washington suburbs, from New England scenery to urban sprawl.

In January 1969, my father officially took up his post with a swearing in ceremony and a presidential breakfast at the White House, to which the whole family was invited.  In a flurry of great excitement, my mother and my sister and I got haircuts and new clothes in preparation to have breakfast with the President at the White House.  We were beyond excited!

We did not discover until barely a week before the event that it was common practice to invite more guests to these events than there was capacity and then to simply un-invite the surplus.  So, there we were, un-invited; all dressed up and no place to go for breakfast!  My father only stayed in his government job for two years, so another opportunity never came our way.  With the benefit of 50 years’ hindsight, I can say that meeting President Nixon is not something I would brag about today!

At the beginning of October this year I got a cryptic email from a senior member of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, informing me of an unspecified charity event in London to be attended by an also unspecified special guest of honour.  As the Jewish representative of SACRE, I was to be invited, so could they have my postal address to send the invitation?  Very mysterious!  Wiser heads than mine advised me to make sure it wasn’t a trick to obtain my address.  Since the sender of the email was actually listed of the BoD website, I decided to take a chance and sent in my postal address.

I was very surprised to receive by post an invitation which read:

His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales requests the pleasure of the company of Mr Lou Tribus at a Reception to celebrate the Jewish Community of the United Kingdom to be given at Buckingham Palace…

I RSVPed immediately and gently asked them to note that I am a Ms and not a Mr. I quizzed anyone who would listen on what exactly “Day Dress” meant as a dress code for Buckingham Palace.  As the day of the reception drew closer, I half expected to be un-invited, remembering my White House experience.  Fortunately, the invitation stood and on the 5^th of December I joined a long line of Jewish guests waiting to show their invitation and identity documents to the guards on duty.  Having never been beyond the outer gates of Bucking Palace, I walked slowly through the outer and inner courtyards and into the entrance hall, determined to take in every detail.  It was all elegance and grandeur, from the massive courtyard to the glittering chandeliers and plush carpets.

There were about 300-400 people at the reception, and I didn’t recognise anyone except the Prince of Wales himself.  There were drinks and canapés circulating and a string quartet on a balcony above the reception room.  The Prince gave a thoughtful speech and afterwards a lucky few with numbered badges got to meet him personally.  I didn’t have a number on my badge, so I ate some more canapés and chatted with a variety of people.

Here are some excerpts from the Prince’s speech.  The full text has been reprinted in the Jewish Chronicle.

“It is a great delight to welcome you this evening to Buckingham Palace, as the festival of Chanukah approaches, and to celebrate with you the contribution of our Jewish community to the health, wealth and happiness of the United Kingdom.  In every walk of life, in every field of endeavour, our nation could have had no more generous citizens, and no more faithful friends. 

That is why I am so glad to have this opportunity to say thank you, albeit in a small way, for all that you do, and have done, across the country, in major national and international institutions, and in local communities the length and breadth of the land. 

I often describe the United Kingdom as a “community of communities”, which is enriched by the diversity of its constituent groups, and whose whole is so much greater than its parts. 

…And it is why this time of year, which is so special to Christians and Jews alike, offered an ideal opportunity to arrange this evening’s celebration – because the importance of Unity through Diversity sits at the very heart of our values as a society. It defines what – and who – we are as a country.

The connection between the Crown and our Jewish Community is something special and precious. I say this from a particular and personal perspective because I have grown up being deeply touched by the fact that British synagogues have, for centuries, remembered my Family in your weekly prayers. And as you remember my Family, so we too remember and celebrate you.

…I am thinking not just of the most prominent members of our Jewish community who, through the ages, have literally transformed this country for the better.  I am thinking also, crucially, of those who are not household names, but who are the cornerstones of their own local communities. They are the people who, I am delighted to say, make up the larger part of this evening’s guest list and to whom I want to offer particular gratitude.”

I had a very good view of the Prince who was only about 5 meters away from me.  I chatted with many people from various organisations.  Not all of the guests were Jewish.  I chatted with an Imam from Leeds and joined a conversation with a Sikh guest and two vicars.  The Palace house staff were very friendly and helpful and very strict about who was allowed to actually meet the prince.

I concluded my visit with a trip to the Ladies’ room where I found three other female visitors, all as curious as I about the Buckingham Palace toilets.  We all agreed that they were the cleanest, best appointed facilities we had ever visited!

I didn’t really want the evening to be over and as I collected my bag from the cloakroom and changed into my boots to walk back to the underground station, I briefly considered whether I should try to leave one of my party shoes behind so the Prince could find it and run after me to return it.  I decided against it, not wanting to find out whether or not His Royal Highness would think I was worth the effort!