Our mission is to follow the tradition started in the fourteenth century during the reign of King Diniz. His wife Queen St. Isabel or Elizabeth was responsible for the tradition. The people of Portugal were starving and Queen Isabel promised God if He would help her feed the people, she would give away all her jewels. Her cruel husband, King Diniz, saw her with something in her apron. It was the jewels. He asked her what she had in her apron and she replied “roses my lord”. He grabbed her apron and out tumbled white roses….it was a miracle. It was winter and no roses could grow at that time of year. Then the next morning in the harbor two ships appeared. They were abandoned and on one was grain and on the other was animals. The queen ordered that bread be made with the grain and the meat of the animals cooked for the poor. The queen selected twelve of the poorest men of the town. The poorest of them she placed her crown on his head and made him “emperior” for the day. Then she invited the men to dine on the bread and meat and invited the whole town to come to the great feast as their guests.
©2017 Volunteer Center of Santa Cruz County, an affiliate of the HandsOn Connect, 1740 17th Ave | Santa Cruz, CA 95062
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