St. Andrew’s Hall observes National Day of Mourning

Dear members of the St. Andrew’s Hall community,

On Wednesday, September 13, 2022 Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and British Columbia Premier John Horgan announced a federal and provincial day of mourning in honour of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada.  President Santa Ono also announced a day of mourning for UBC on September 19^th.  (https://broadcastemail.ubc.ca/2022/09/13/national-day-of-mourning-in-honour-of-queen-elizabeth-ii-on-september-19/)

As Dean of St. Andrew’s Hall, I have informed our hardworking staff team that we will also observe this national day of mourning for Queen Elizabeth II by closing our offices.  Therefore, our housing office and facilities staff will not be available on Monday, September 19th.  Any urgent and emergent issues can be address by your community co-ordinators.

One of the many blessings of St. Andrew’s Hall is that we are an academic community made up of scholars, students, staff and their families representing the global diversity of God’s creation.  As such, many will come from nations outside the British Commonwealth and without a connection to the Queen.  As a constitutional monarchy, Canada has evolved over the years in our relationship with the United Kingdom from the 1867 British North America Act, to the 1931 Statue of Westminster and the 1982 repatriation of our constitution.  Part of this evolution, however, has also included a painful coming to terms with the legacy of colonialism in Canada and the impact on our relations with the Indigenous peoples of this land.

However one approaches the legacy of the crown in Canada, we pause on Monday to acknowledge the life and legacy of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada.  As a college of the Presbyterian Church in Canada, we especially recognize our late Queen’s deep and abiding Christian faith.  While officially the head of the Church of England, the Queen worshipped in Presbyterian churches especially while in Scotland, where she hosted the Moderator of the Church of Scotland every year at Balmoral Castle.  At the Presbyterian Church in Canada’s annual General Assembly, commissioners to the Assembly send a “loyal address” to the Queen thanking her as Head of State and acknowledging her “personal faith and service to God, which finds expression in your life and in your duties.”

Therefore, may Monday be a day of rest and remembrance for us all.  I continue to pray for the St. Andrew’s Hall community as you dive deeper into your fall studies at the University of British Columbia and associated colleges.  Thank you again for being part of our community on campus and helping to enrich our common life together as a college.

Grace and peace,

Rev. Dr. Ross Lockhart,

Dean of St. Andrew’s Hall