William announces first public engagement since Kate Middleton’s cancer diagnosis: Prince of Wales visits charity food in Surrey and youth center in west London on Thursday as princess continues recovery at home
Prince William today announced his first public engagements since the news of his wife, the Princess of Wales’ cancer diagnosis almost four weeks ago.
The Prince of Wales, who has spent the past three and a half weeks with Kate and their children during the Easter break, will return to public duties this Thursday.
William, 41, will visit Surrey and West London to ‘spotlight community and environmental impact organizations in the area through their work’.
The Prince will first visit the charity Surplus to Supper to see how surplus food is delivered, sorted and repackaged for delivery to local organisations.
He will then visit a youth center in the capital, which regularly receives surplus food from the charity, and hear how it helps the young people it supports.
William last made a public engagement at an event tackling homelessness in Sheffield on March 19 – three days before Kate’s cancer revelation on March 22.
The announcement comes on the day William’s sister-in-law Meghan Markle launched the first product from her new business venture American Riviera Orchard in California, sending influencers and friends a jar of strawberry jam.
April 11 – Prince William and Prince George watch Aston Villa v Lille at Villa Park last Thursday
March 22 – Kate reveals in a video that she is undergoing preventive chemotherapy
A Kensington Palace spokesman said: ‘Reducing food waste has a significant number of environmental benefits, including reducing emissions from landfill that contribute to climate change.
‘Protecting the environment for future generations is one of the Prince of Wales’ main priorities and in 2020 he launched the Earthshot Prize, a global environmental prize and platform to discover, award, celebrate and scale breakthrough solutions to repair and regenerate the planet .
‘In 2021, The City of Milan won an Earthshot award in the ‘Build a waste-free world’ category for its innovative Food Hubs that collect surplus food and distribute it to the communities that need it.’
It comes after William and his son Prince George attended an Aston Villa game together last Thursday in their first public outing since Kate’s cancer announcement.
The prince was seen smiling and clapping in the Villa Park stands during the club’s 2-1 win against Lille in the first leg of the Europa Conference League quarter-finals.
19 March – Prince William is pictured during a visit to the Millennium Gallery in Sheffield
March 11 – William and Kate are seen leaving Windsor together while being driven in a car
William also posted a message congratulating Lionesses’ Rachel Daly on her retirement on the Prince and Princess of Wales’ social media accounts last week.
On March 22, the Princess of Wales, 42, revealed she is undergoing treatment for cancer in an emotional video message.
She, the Prince of Wales and their three children all missed the Easter Sunday service at St George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, following the announcement, despite attending last year.
The family spent the Easter holidays together as they came to terms with Kate’s diagnosis, which was discovered in post-operative tests following major abdominal surgery.
In the message revealing the diagnosis last month, Kate said: ‘Obviously this has come as a huge shock and William and I have done everything we can to process and deal with this privately for the sake of our young family. As you can imagine, this has taken time.
10 March – A Mother’s Day photo of Kate with Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, released by Kensington Palace. Kate later apologized for editing the photo
25 December 2023 – Kate was last seen at a royal event at church in Sandringham
‘It has taken me time to recover from a major operation to start my treatment.
“But, most importantly, it has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that is appropriate for them and to reassure them that I will be fine.”
Since revealing the diagnosis, the Prince and Princess of Wales are said to be ‘tremendously touched’ and ‘extremely moved’ by the public’s warmth and support.
The king, who has carried out low-key official duties behind palace walls, made his most significant public appearance at the Easter Sunday service since his own cancer diagnosis was announced in early February.
He was described by the palace as being ‘so proud’ of the princess for her courage to speak out and is said to be in ‘closest contact with his beloved daughter-in-law’.