Prince William Talks 'Deep and Lasting Impression' of Mom Princess Diana's Work in His Life

Princess Diana died almost 26 years ago, but her legacy lives on with her eldest son, Prince William. The 41-year-old Prince of Wales honored his mother while giving a speech honoring the new Homewards initiative, a five-year program to help end homelessness.

"My first visit to a homelessness shelter was when I was 11 with my mother," the next in line to the British royal throne shared. "The visits we made, left a deep and lasting impression."

The father of three added, "I met so many extraordinary people and listened to so many heartbreaking personal stories. Too many people have found themselves without a stable and permanent place to call home."

Princess Diana died on Aug. 31, 1997, at the age of 36. Shedding light on the issues of homelessness was one of her passions.

William kicked off his two-day tour of the United Kingdom on Monday, unveiling the London borough of Lambeth as the first of six locations for Homewards. The charity empowers people with skills to help gain employment and break the cycle of homelessness. The program is sponsored by the Royal Foundation, which is run by William and his wife, Kate Middleton, the new Princess of Wales, who took over the title from Diana following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022.

William's now-estranged brother, Prince Harry, and his wife, Meghan Markle, used to be a part of the foundation before the couple created their own Sussex Royal foundation before stepping down as senior members of the royal family altogether in 2021.

They have since relocated to California with their son, Archie, and later welcomed their daughter, Lilibet. Harry and William have been estranged in recent years following the Sussex’s exit, their Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan, as well as Harry’s 2023 memoir, Spare, which personally called out William numerous times.

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