As Prince Harry’s trip to New York City began, his thoughts turned to his family back home in California.
On September 23, the Duke of Sussex, 40, FaceTimed his wife, Meghan Markle, and their children, Prince Archie, 5, and Princess Lilibet, 3, before taking the stage at the 2024 Concordia Annual Summit in New York City.
While talking with his family, Harry swept the camera around the room, giving his children a brief virtual tour of the event venue at the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel.
On the first day of his visit to New York City, Harry spoke about The Diana Award, the sole organization founded in his mother Princess Diana’s memory, during a mental health panel discussion. Dr. Tessy Ojo, CEO of the Diana Award, and two Diana Legacy Award winners, Chiara Riyanti Hutapea Zhang, 18, and Christina Williams, 27, accompanied the Duke of Sussex.
“He is really kind-hearted.” He not only helped us get comfortable speaking on stage, but he also comforted us afterward,” Zhang told people during the event. “Backstage, he was actually calling Meghan. That struck me as very lovely, and it helped to humanize him. He made sure we were not nervous at all.”
Williams said, “Here is someone in a high-level position who genuinely cares about young people, our voices, and our actions. They say you never want to meet your idols, but I met someone I admire, and I am leaving the encounter with that admiration, if not more adoration, since I know he is passionate about the things he represents.”
Harry and Meghan, 43, are renowned for staying in regular contact with their children when they are away from home. When the Duke and Duchess of Sussex came to Canada for the Invictus Games’ One Year to Go event in February, Meghan captured images on her phone of Harry attempting to adaptive ski to “show the kids.”
“I know that my mum would be incredibly proud of you guys. Not just you, but all of the award winners…Your activism, your compassion, those two things are so true to how my mum led her live, and what she believed in, and the way you do it is incredible. So thank you,” Duke says pic.twitter.com/90OFkSEc75
— Janine Henni (@JP_Henni) September 23, 2024
Prince Harry, Williams, Zhang, and Ojo met for a conversation about the mental health problems that young people face today, as well as strategies to improve results for their generation. On the same day, the Diana Award announced the commencement of its “Decade of Youth Wellbeing” to commemorate its 25th anniversary. According to the release, the program is “a bold, ambitious, and collaborative plan to harness the power [of] young people, like Christina and Chiara, to lead positive change.”
The Duke of Sussex’s support and optimism start behind the scenes.
“I believe he was extremely supportive of us, saying that we’re going to go out there and do an excellent job. He also spoke about issues that he was really concerned about, such as climate change and attempting to de-stigmatize mental health, bringing it down to the level of everyone’s business,” Williams told PEOPLE. “It’s not only about mental health; it’s also about mental fitness and wellbeing. So I believe that was really excellent to get us ready for the stage and put us in a position where we could simply speak from the heart.”
Prince Harry and his brother Prince William are both supporters of The Diana Award, and in March, they attended a London event marking the organization’s 25th anniversary, where they met the 20 Legacy Award recipients from across the world.
“We are deeply grateful, and it is a joy to have both of her sons supporting our effort. This is their mother’s heritage. ” They are both extremely committed to driving change,” Ojo told PEOPLE at the Concordia Summit, explaining what it means to have both of the late Princess of Wales’ sons championing the cause. “We know it’s a privilege to have their support, and we will continue to work to make them proud and keep their mother’s legacy alive.”
The Diana Award panel was one of the Duke of Sussex’s first destinations on his journey to New York. Later that day, on September 23, he attended an engagement with The HALO Trust, an organization his late mother deeply supported until her death in 1997. His tour will continue on September 24, with participation in the Clinton Global Initiative and trips to African Parks and Travalyst.