King Charles.Photo: Stephen Pond/Getty
WhileKing Charles’coronationguest list includes members of the royal family,foreign monarchsand dignitaries from around the world, one “regular person” who scored aninvitationto the crowning ceremony is getting ready for the big day.
Claire Saunders, Facilities Management Business Partner at Co-Op, was awarded a British Empire Medal for her campaigning to protect shop workers — and on May 6, she will be one of the 2,000 guests at Westminster Abbey for the coronation ofKing CharlesandQueen Camilla.
“I’ve found a really nice dress, and I’ve got my fascinator, booked my spray tan, booked my eyelashes — it’s all good!” Saunders, 42, tells PEOPLE exclusively.
She adds that guests for the crowning ceremony were asked to arrive at Westminster Abbey at 7 a.m. — four hours before the service is scheduled to begin.
“I’m going to hide some snacks!” Saunders shares. “I’m going to sneak some chocolate in my clutch bag — I’ve already made sure it’s got a pocket!”
Claire Saunders.Claire Saunders, BEM
The BEM honor is distributed at the local level for outstanding community service or achievement, celebrating exemplary volunteer or charity work with lasting impact.
Saunders was nominated for her BEM in 2021 after standing up for shop workers amid an increase in threatening behavior amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“During the pandemic, we noticed a hike in verbal abuse, sometimes even physical abuse. I’m the sort of person that just can’t sit back so I got involved in the USDAW campaign,” she explains of the union for shop workers. Saunders lobbied for tougher sentences for abusive behavior and encouraged employees to share stories as part of the #notpartofthejob campaign.
Saunders previously attended a Buckingham Palace garden party andKate Middleton’s Christmas carol concert at Westminster Abbey, but she says the coronation “tops the list.” But when she received an email inviting her to King Charles’ crowning, she thought her friends were “playing a joke on me.”
“I couldn’t believe it! I’m just Claire from Essex,” she says. “I was shocked to get the BEM but to get this, I’m just so overwhelmed.”
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Saunders adds, “I’m just a regular person — I’m completely and utterly normal, and I think that’s what makes it more special that they are recognizing regular people in the community. You just expect it’s going to be royals and famous faces, but for us to get this opportunity, it shows the future of the royal family and the way they are thinking. I am absolutely honored.”
source: people.com
