Prince Harry has made a heartfelt tribute to his late mother at a new centre for children with HIV/Aids in Africa.
The thoughtful prince has named part of the new Mamohato Children’s Centre in memory of Princess Diana.
The new centre will care for and educate 1,500 children a year in the kingdom of Lesotho.
It was built and funded by the charity Sentebale, which Prince Harry co-founded with Prince Seeiso of Lesotho. The name Sentebale, which means “forget me not”, was chosen to remember both Harry and Seeiso’s mothers.
The British royal has a special affinity with Lesotho after visiting on his gap year at the age of 19. One of the smallest nations on the planet, it has the second-highest rate of HIV/Aids.
Princess Diana did a lot to reduce the stigma surrounding HIV/Aids. She will be remembered in the centre’s dining hall, where children will come together three times a day.
“The centre is named after Seeiso’s mother but we felt it was right to acknowledge Harry’s mother as well so we decided that the dining hall was the appropriate place,” said Sentebale CEO Cathy Ferrier. “It’s the place where all the children will gather three times a day and do plays and drama as well, so it felt like the right kind of place.”
Princess Diana, the princes and nanny Olga Powell on their annual ski holiday in 1993.
In another touching tribute, Prince Harry has named the Welcome Centre in memory of Olga Powell, his beloved nanny.
Olga was a constant influence on the prince and his older brother, joining the family when William was only six months old. She spent 15 years working for the royals, and was often invited to significant events after her retirement, including Williams’ 21st.
She is credited with helping William and Harry through their parents’ break up and divorce.
“When she sadly died and they had the funeral, instead of having flowers and gifts she asked if they would donate all the money from the funeral to Sentebale,” said Ferrier.
“She knew Harry cares hugely about it and so she cared about it too.
“In one of the planning meetings I was having with Harry we said ‘what shall we do about naming?’ and we decided the welcome centre should be in memory of Olga.
“This building is so much Harry’s building, he designed the front bit, [it] was his drawing that we sent to the architect.”
