Prince William and Prince Harry unite to remember their late friend in heartfelt message amid America tour controversy
By Madhurima Haque|
Prince William and Prince Harry have shown a united front? in supporting a message for a charity honouring their late friend.
The brothers wrote a joint letter to be read at the annual carol service honouring their late friend Henry van Straubenzee, who died in a car crash in 2002 when he was 18 years old.
Around the time of his death, he was due to travel to Uganda to teach in a school during his gap year, and so the memorial fund set up in his name focuses on supporting those schools to build better facilities for a better educational environment.
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The memorial fund was set up by van Straubenzee's parents, Alex and Claire, and brothers, Thomas and Charlie, who are godparents to William's daughter Princess Charlotte and Harry's son Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, respectively.
"We believe everyone here tonight will agree that what Claire and Alex have achieved since 2009... is nothing short of extraordinary," the brothers' letter began.
"As you gather under this roof tonight, the charity is supporting 51 nursery, primary and secondary schools in rural Uganda, where 1700 projects have been completed and over 35,000 children, each year, are benefitting by receiving education they wouldn't have otherwise had.
"For those of us who knew Henners, we will always miss his mischievous charm and hilarious sense of humor... Henry's legacy will live on through the incredible achievements of what his mum and dad have accomplished over the years."
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"As long as funds permit, they will continue to monitor their schools, enduring that the children of south east Uganda receive that vital education, providing the opportunity to escape poverty as they grow up, and hopefully that of their own children in the future," the brothers wrote.
William and Harry wished everyone an ?"enjoyable evening and very Happy Christmas" in their absence.
Neither William nor Harry were both unable to attend the ceremony จC William was flying back from the US with Kate Middleton after having completed his engagements surrounding the Earthshot Prize in Boston, whereas Harry resides permanently in California with Meghan Markle, and their children Archie and Lilibet.
William and Kate's three-day visit to the continent the Sussexes live in was ?marred by fresh accusations of racism back at Buckingham Palace, as well as the release of Harry and Meghan's Netflix docuseries trailer, which some say was a "deliberate" move to "upstage" the Waleses' Boston tour.
William and Kate did not see Harry and Meghan while they were in the US.?
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