Community champion Sam to attend King's Coronation at Westminster Abbey

Community champion Sam D'Souza from our Hayes store will be rubbing shoulders with royalty and celebrities when she attends the Coronation of King Charles in Westminster Abbey on Saturday.

Sam, who's worked for Asda for 30 years, said: "The invite came as a complete surprise. I was overwhelmed. I must have read it about three times and I then sent it to my mum to read, to make sure I'd read it right!

"Then she phoned me and said 'please fill in the form and send it back to say you can go.'

"I really was shocked, I never expected it at all. I'm so excited and nervous at the same time. It's been a bit of a whirlwind since I found out I was going."

Sam was awarded a British Empire Medal in 2020 for the way she helped the local community during the pandemic.

She organised support for the most vulnerable people in the local community – arranging regular friendship calls for elderly people at risk of becoming isolation on their own during the lockdown.

Sam said: "The first thing I thought about when I got the invite was 'what am I going to wear?'

"I remembered that our local WI group, who use our store's community room for craft stuff and knit and natter meetings, once made me a fascinator for Christmas to wear.

"So I got in touch with Wendy Capehorn from the group to ask if she'd make me a fascinator to match the dress that I'd got. She has very kindly hand made me one. So for me that's like carrying a bit of the community with me.

"She was in tears when she gave it to me. She said she was honoured to be asked because she feels like it's part of history."

Sam will join fellow community champions Jo Scott and Julie Cook from our Pwllheli and Aberdare stores and delivery driver Geoff Norris from Asda Wisbech at Westminster Abbey.