Prince William spread festive cheer today as he handed out gifts to soldiers’ children at Picton Barracks.
The Prince of Wales, 42, who acts as colonel-in-chief of the 1st Battalion of the Mercian Regiment. visited the Regiment for a Christmas event.
Upon arrival, His Royal Highness was greeted by a ram from the regiment called Derby, before meeting soldiers and their families, to hear more about their experiences and roles within the Mercian Regiment.
In a sweet moment, William thanked the little children for giving him Christmas cards, before one child offered him a Santa hat.
Another child, 10-year-old Carson Heighway, drew a sweet drawing of William, which he then put in his pocket to take home.
She then collected gifts from under a festively decorated tree and offered each child a ‘pressie’.
The Prince met with soldiers of different ranks from across the Battalion.
They have all gone above and beyond in their roles by raising charity funds, volunteering and helping with extracurricular activities.
William also heard songs from a Fijian choir made up of soldiers from the Mercian Regiment.
Prince William spread festive cheer today as he handed out gifts to soldiers’ children at Picton Barracks.
The Prince of Wales, 42, who acts as colonel-in-chief of the 1st Battalion of the Mercian Regiment, visited the Regiment for a Christmas event.
Upon arrival, His Royal Highness was greeted by a ram from the regiment called Derby, before meeting soldiers and their families, to hear more about their experiences and roles within the Mercian Regiment.
Another child, 10-year-old Carson Heighway, drew a sweet drawing of William, which he then put in his pocket to take home.
His Royal Highness last visited the Regiment in 2023, when he joined them on Salisbury Plain to see first-hand the armored infantry work carried out by the Regiment.
The future king opted for a navy blue suit with a light blue open-collared shirt and sweater.
She added brown suede shoes, a classic and casual look for the Prince.
comes later shared a video of her visit to a homeless charity last week, where she helped serve a festive lunch to those in need.
The Prince of Wales, 42, was in good spirits during his lunch shift at The Passage charity in London on Thursday.
He first visited the charity with his late mother, Princess Diana, and was in jovial form last week, teasing the head chef in charge about his birthday.
The future king opted for a navy blue suit with a light blue open-collared shirt and sweater. She added brown suede shoes, a classic and casual look for the Princ.
William is seen chatting with families at the barracks today.
In a post today on the Prince and Princess of Wales’ Instagram account, William wrote: “A sincere thank you to all the @passagecharity volunteers who work tirelessly to support those experiencing homelessness, especially during the festive season.
The royal added: “Acts of kindness, such as serving Christmas lunches, bring hope and foster a sense of community for those who need it most.”
The touching video clip that accompanies the publication shows the royal embracing head chef Claudette Hawkins.
When the prince reaches out to hug him, he is heard saying, “Come on, birthday girl.” Happy Birthday’.
As the couple continues to hug, he jokes, “I won’t ask you what birthday it is,” to which the head chef bursts out laughing.
It’s been a busy week for the Prince of Wales, who was in Paris for the historic reopening of Notre Dame, where he met President-elect Donald Trump and attended Kate Middleton’s Christmas carol concert on Friday night at the Abbey of Westminster.
The secret visit to serve Christmas dinner led one of the people he met to describe the Prince as a “legend”.
Leo Scanlon, 39, a customer at The Passage in London, said the future king spent more than an hour serving vegetables in an apron, chatting and posing for selfies with around a hundred people helped by the charity.
Cool! Prince William pictured with Claudette Hawkins, head chef at homeless charity The Passage, last week.
The royals and the head chef enjoyed a warm hug, with William wishing Claudette Hawkins a happy birthday. The Prince also avoided asking Claudette’s age.
Prince William pictured during Christmas lunch at The Passage in London on Thursday.
Vegetables? The Prince of Wales chats to the people he serves during his visit to the charity
Although the visit was not announced in advance and there was no media present, Leo contacted the Daily Mail because he wanted to ‘thank William from the bottom of my heart for what he did.’
He said: “When you’re homeless you quickly fall to the edge of society and it’s scary how you can become invisible.” We become urban furniture. You are not seen as a person. When you have someone at the top of the game coming down and talking to someone at the bottom, not to take a photo, just because they care. Well, it means a lot.
Leo said there had been “murmurs” that the prince might attend the annual Christmas lunch of The Passage, a charity he was first introduced to by his late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales when he was a child and of which he is now a member. sponsor.
But he said the royal arrived without fanfare, walking quietly through a side door, around 1.30pm and many did not realize he was there until he began serving.
‘The Passage canteen can be a pretty hostile environment at times, there are a lot of people with mental health problems or who don’t speak any English and are feeling frustrated. It’s quite difficult in a small space. But the way he approached everything when he arrived was incredible,” he said.