Dinner of a lifetime with Her Majesty

By GLORIA BAUAI
MOROBE couple Giosi and Margret Labi have met Queen Elizabeth and even dined with her.
“She was wearing gloves but you could feel that her hands were very soft. Her eyes were so kind.”
As Great Britain, the Commonwealth and indeed the world mourn the death of the longest serving monarch, the Labis went down memory lane to remember their encounter with her, that rare privilege and honour to meet one of the world’s famous and most popular figures.
What made it more special was that they met on PNG soil.
Now 70, Margret Karasa Labi recalls fondly the rare opportunity in 1974 as a 21-year-old to dine with Her Majest at the Bird of Paradise Hotel in Goroka.
Margret was three years into her career as a teacher at the now Hagen Primary School in Mt Hagen. She was invited to dinner with the Queen as she was the Girl Guides deputy commissioner for the Highlands region.
She travelled from Mt Hagen to Goroka, nervous and excited at what was to be one of the most memorable moments in her life. She aptly describes it as a “dinner of a lifetime”.

“ She was wearing gloves but you could feel that her hands were very soft. Her eyes were so kind.”

“Protocol applied, so I was assigned an escort.”
Her Majesty instantly put Margret and everyone else at ease with her demeanour and regal charm.
Margret found her to be a lovely and humble person, full of humility despite her royal status.
“Everything she did was very gentle and gracious. The way she ate, the way she talked and smiled, refined through years of practise. Oh, you instantly love her.
“She took time to meet everyone in the room, short conversations. I was so nervous when my time came to introduce myself to her. But her aura was warm. When she spoke to you, she seemed genuinely interested.
“She asked me about my work in the Girl Guide. It was a common interest I had with the Queen.”
Margret kept the invitation card, the dress she wore and handbag she carried to the dinner as her personal souvenirs over the years. She shows them off to her children and grandchildren to remind all about that “once in a lifetime opportunity”.
Husband Giosi, 73, who served as a police officer for half his lifetime, met the Queen twice.
The first time was as a police sub-inspector in Rabaul in 1974.
“It was low tide at the Rabaul Harbor and the queen had to come ashore. We (security personnel) formed a long line from the vessel to the wharf. As she walked down, she was holding our arms for support.”
In 1977, Senior Inspector Giosi, was working in Mt Hagen when the Queen came for her second visit to PNG.
“When they sent for me, I travelled by road to Gumini, then to Lae to team up with a mobile squad there, then to Port Moresby to join three more mobile squads there, and flew to Alotau in the Royal Australian Navy Hercules.”
Giosi, from Finschhafen, was a commanding officer in charge of troops providing security at where the Queen was to pass through.
“Our job was to ensure that the Queen enters and exists without any disturbance or hindrance. I was excited for this special assignment. I didn’t know how close I would be to her this time. But at least I got to see in person for a second time.
“She travelled on the government yacht along the coast from Alotau wharf to Giligili wharf. We escorted them in banana boats. And when the boat docked, she came ashore, once more holding onto our linked arms for support.
“That was my second encounter with Her Majesty. It was a personal memory to cherish. That moment, seeing her up close and being in her presence.”
Giosi and Margret Labi will never forget Her Majesty.
“We are very fortunate to have been the few chosen ones to have that close contact and interaction with the highest royal. Meeting or eating with the prime minister is a different feeling compared to eating with the queen. It’s the highest honour one could have.
“Although our meeting were brief, she touched our lives. She was so humble and really lived the life of service to her people.”
May she rest in peace.