The Duchess of Cambridge marked Armed Forces Day with shared images of private British Army visits from last year to mark the occasion.
The Duchess shared the following on Twitter and Instagram: "Today on Armed Forces Day, William and I would like to pay tribute to the brave men and women, past and present, serving in all of our armed forces, at sea, on land and in the air, here in the UK and around the world. Thank you for all you and your families sacrifice to keep us safe. Last year, I was honoured to spend time with the British Army to see how they train serving personnel and new recruits. It was wonderful to see first-hand the many important and varied roles the military play day in, day out to protect us all, and I look forward to discovering more about the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force in due course."
Visits to Pirbright Training Academy and the 101 Operational Sustainment Brigade at Abingdon Airfield took place last November.
If, despite this being ground forces hardware, you're first thought upon seeing this image is Top Gun: Maverick, then like William and Kate, and myself (twice now), you may have seen the box office juggernaut which is soaring to hit a billion.
I think it very likely we're on the cusp of hearing additional honorary military appointments for the Duchess. I would definitely say...watch this space.
The Duchess was appropriately kitted out in comfortable pieces in earth tones.
Following their
visit to the Fitzwilliam Museum
for the unveiling of their first joint portrait, the Duke and Duchess of
Cambridge undertook several engagements in Cambridgeshire.
Looking through the itinerary, coupled with the unveiling of the portrait, I
think it quite likely this day may have been intended to mark their tenth
wedding anniversary officially. Given the challenges the pandemic represented,
a shift to a summer's day (the weather played ball nicely) coinciding with
both the Queen's Platinum Jubilee and Prince William's 40th, it offered the
perfect opportunity for the Cambridges to celebrate Cambridgeshire.
The day saw a focus on areas close to their hearts including homelessness and
family supports. They visited Kate's patronage East Anglia's Children's
Hospices in Milton.
EACH revealed it marked three milestones: a decade since Kate became Royal
Patron, her first public visit to the Milton hospice, and William's first time
accompanying his wife to see the work of the charity.
The duke and duchess were then greeted by Kirsty and Gary Carlin, whose
four-year-old daughter Libby lay sleeping on the floor beside them.
After learning about her rare genetic condition, Libby’s parents offered
to wake their daughter before the duke said: “Please don’t wake her.”
“We know what happens when you wake a sleeping child,” Kate added.
The pair also took part in a small art session, where a canvas full of
handprints was laid out in front of them.
Kate sat with an eight-year-old girl called Willow Bamber, who suffers
from a severe neurological condition called Leigh’s disease.
The duchess invited the youngster to paint her hand, and as she
tentatively started, Kate said: “Don’t be shy.”
The video below has very sweet footage of the arts and crafts session.
The hospice was opened by the late Diana, Princess of Wales in 1989.
The visit coincides with
Children's Hospice Week. This year's theme is #ForTheChildren -- showing how important each individual
child is to the expert care children’s hospices provide.
To mark the week, Kate shared a letter of support.
In her letter Kate wrote: "For any parent, coming to terms with the news your
child has a life-threatening condition and may die young is heart-breaking and
incredibly frightening. Families can often feel isolated, but having the
support of a children’s hospice means they don’t have to face that future
alone. Every day, the UK’s 54 children’s hospices are a vital lifeline for
families caring for a seriously ill child, and over the last ten years I have
been privileged to see first-hand the incredible work they do."
The Duke and Duchess toured the facility. EACH currently provides care and
support for more than 580 children, young people and family members across the
region, with 211 currently using services through Milton.
Chief Executive Phil Gormley said: "We very much enjoyed welcoming Their Royal
Highnesses to Milton. It was The Duchess’s first public visit to Milton and
the very first time we had the pleasure of welcoming The Duke to one of our
hospices so it was a very special, memorable and momentous day for everyone
connected with EACH. The Duchess met our fantastic staff and volunteers at
Milton, who work tirelessly with children and their families needing our
services. They had the chance to explain the difficulties they have faced in
recent years, particularly in light of the pandemic and the isolation they
have felt through shielding."
Mr Gormley added: "The visit was the perfect opportunity to celebrate ten
years since Her Royal Highness became our Royal Patron. Throughout the decade,
The Duchess has been immensely supportive by championing our cause. Her
continued support comes with warmth, empathy and understanding, including
beyond public view, and her Patronage is enjoyed and appreciated by everyone
at EACH. We are extremely thankful and consider ourselves honoured and very
lucky to benefit from her hard work, generosity and support."
The Duke and Duchess also met with a bereaved family in the gardens.
Parents Henry and Jane White, and their daughter Clara sadly lost their
son Douglas in February 2018. He had Neuroblastoma and was just four years
old.
Jane said: “Coming back (to the hospice) brings back all the
memories”.
Will Self, EACH Chair of Trustees, celebrated and honoured the 10-year
anniversary of the Duchess being Royal Patron: "It's been an incredibly
special year for us, as we proudly celebrate 10 years of your
Patronage."
Kensington Palace tweeted: "We’re always reminded of the inspiring resilience
of the children here, the strength of their families and the unwavering
support of staff members."
We returned to @EACH_hospices
today & we’re always reminded of the inspiring resilience of the
children here, the strength of their families & the unwavering support
of staff members.
Kensington Palace said: "Jimmy’s was set up in 1995 and offers safety and
support for individuals experiencing homelessness. Services include mental
health support, workshops on life skills, and onward housing provision. The
charity has been trialling a new modular home offer for some of its residents.
These homes are moveable, small-scale spaces that provide residents with
separate living, cooking, sleeping and bathroom areas as well as their own
front door. Cambridge is the first city in the UK to explore modular homes and
Jimmy’s has 22 sites across the city."
Jimmy's impact has been felt and appreciated for almost three decades.
William and Kate visited a resident in their modular home to hear about how it
has made a difference to their life and helped them learn how to live
independently.
William and Kate previously visited during their first day of engagements in
Cambridge in 2012. You'll all remember speculation was fever pitch regarding
'Baby Cambridge'. It was announced just days later Prince George was on the
way.
'One of the residents of the Modular Homes Pete, who met their Royal
Highnesses Prince William and Kate Middleton on their first visit, and
again today, said: "They did (remember) it was nice. He said he’d come and
see me in another 10 years. We spoke about my past and getting to where I
am now. They’re both really nice people, definitely. And they’re just
interested in how far I’ve moved since the last time and I said, well,
without Jimmy’s help I wouldn’t have done it and I’ve got my own flat now
and everything."
Eamonn Kelly, 52, lives in one of the modular homes and chatted to the
royals about his experience as he showed them his home. He said: "I got on
very well, they were down to earth people, they were very genuine. They
were interested in you as a person, not your past or your future, you just
can’t get any better than those two people, but only for this person (Mark
Allan, Jimmy's CEO), I wouldn’t be here the way I am today, it’s them,
Matt Wiseman, Zoe, it’s all them that have made it possible for both me
and Pete to be where we are today."
It appears that Eamonn made an impression on the Duke, as Prince William
asked him for a photo together as he was leaving. While walking back to
their car, Prince William said: "Eamonn come here, I'd like a photo with
you", before summoning him over for a once in a lifetime opportunity for
the resident.'
Jimmy's CEO Mark Allan told Cambridgeshire Live: "The fact that they're coming
to Cambridgeshire today and they chose Jimmy's as one of the charities they
wanted to visit means a lot. Because it shows, and in the conversations that
we had today with the residents and the staff, they're interested in how you
resolve homelessness, they're interested in what support works best for people
who end up homeless and how to get them out of that quickly or how to prevent
it."
Finally, to celebrate the very best of Cambridgeshire, the Duke and Duchess
will visit the first-ever Cambridgeshire County Day at the July Racecourse,
Newmarket.
Comprising 120 exhibitors from Cambridgeshire businesses, charity, community
and public sectors, the Duke and Duchess visited a number of stalls and met members of the public.
Ahead of the event, organizers revealed: "With more than 6,000 attendees
expected, the event will provide a wonderful opportunity for the county’s
diverse and vibrant community to come together and get inspired by the best of
Cambridgeshire, as local business, charities, clubs, voluntary groups and
public sector organisations from every corner of the County showcase what they
do and why they are great."
