Prince William has received what is perhaps his most touching gift yet.
On Friday, the royal visited The Passage in London, a charity that supports the homeless community in Britain.
After a meet and greet and a tour of the newly renovated facilities, the Duke of Cambridge was presented with a framed photo of a trip he made to the same charity with his mother Diana in 1994, when he and his brother Harry were just young boys.
The snap was taken on the young royal’s second visit to the charity with their mother. The first visit was just one year prior in 1993.
The candid snap shares not only a happy memory, but also a happy feeling.
In the never-before-seen photo, a 12-year-old Harry smiles brightly up at the camera as he sits atop a table beside a volunteer.
Cheeky Harry, who would have only been about 10-years-old at the time, sat contently on his mother’s lap.
Both boys were wearing Lacoste polo shirts with blue pants for the occasion all those years ago, an outfit remembered vividly by the Prince upon seeing the image for the first time.
“He remembered the t-shirts they had on. It was just so touching. He laughed – he found it quite strange that we still had a photograph of him as a child with his mum,” said Mark Smith, the homeless ambassador that presented Wills with the photograph.
The Duke was noticeably touched to receive such a unique gift.
Upon receiving the touching gift, the 33-year-old gave a speech, thanking the charity for the hard work which has helped over 10,000 people since its founding year of 1980.
“The visits I made as a child to this place left a deep and lasting impression upon me – about how important it is to ensure that everyone in our society, especially the poorest, are treated with respect, dignity and kindness, and are given the opportunities to fulfil their potential in life,” said the father of George, two, and one-year-old Charlotte.
Both William and Harry have been gradually building upon the work carried out by their mother since her death, in all areas from homelessness, to mental health.
In Prince Harry’s most candid interview to date, the young royal talks about the tremendous loss of his mother, and how he and his brother plan on making her proud.
William, Harry and Diana pictured in 1995, a year after visiting the charity.
“I don’t have that many memories of my childhood with my Mum,” he admitted to People magazine earlier this month.
All I want to do is make my mother incredibly proud,” Harry added during the exclusive interview. “That’s all I’ve ever wanted to do.”
The former military man continued, “When she died, there was a gaping hole, not just for us but also for a huge amount of people across the world.”
“If I can try and fill a very small part of that, then job done. I will have to, in a good way, spend the rest of my life trying to fill that void as much as possible. And so will William.”
A young Harry cuddles up to his beloved mum.
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