Coronavirus pandemic or not, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle continue to give back to causes that are important to them.
On Wednesday, the couple joined forces with Homeboy Industries, an organization that helps rehabilitate former gang members in Los Angeles. At Immaculate Heart, Markle’s former L.A. high school, the two helped bake and prepare meals for those in need.
In photos shared to the organization’s social media feeds, Prince Harry and Markle can be seen packing up an endless array of reusable meal containers. In another photo, they appear to be learning how to bake from one of the team members.
“Thank you to Harry and Meghan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, for their visit yesterday,” Homeboy Industries’ tweet reads. “Our Bakery & Café teams were thrilled to have them work alongside us to #FeedHOPE to Los Angeles.”
Of course, everyone — including the former royals — was wearing head-to-toe personal protective equipment, from hairnets to face masks and gloves, to make sure none of the donations got contaminated.
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The meals, the charity’s Instagram post says, were to be handed out to food-insecure seniors and youth across the city in the wake of the pandemic.
The organization has provided vital services — like counselling, addiction recovery support and job training — to former gang members since 1988. It supported 9,000 members of the L.A. community last year alone, according to its website.
In a statement to Today, the charity’s founder, Father Greg Boyle, said: “The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were just ‘Harry and Meghan’ to the homies. They rolled up their sleeves and deeply engaged with our workers in the bakery and café. It was immediate kinship and heartening in its mutuality.”
Around 20 years ago, Markle and her mom, Doria Ragland, joined Boyle for a cooking workshop with the charity, Today reports.
“It was remarkable to share our Feed Hope program with Harry and Meghan today,” Mariana Enriquez, manager of Homegirl Café, told Today in a statement. “They are both down-to-earth and kind. The staff was honoured they took the time to see us, hear us and walk on our journey today.”
“We will never forget it.”
Since stepping down from their royal duties in March, Harry and Markle have relocated their family to Los Angeles.
On the same day as their visit, it was announced that the duke and duchess signed with Harry Walker Agency to handle their speaking engagements, per the Los Angeles Times. It’s the same agency that counts Barack and Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey and the Clintons as clients.
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