Prince William received sweet gift for his children during New York City trip

Prince of Wales was in New York this week for Earthshot Innovation Summit

Amber Raiken
New York
Friday 22 September 2023 19:46 BST
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Related: What is Prince William’s Earthshot Prize?

Prince William has received a sweet gift to bring home to his children during his recent trip to New York City.

The Prince of Wales took a trip to New York this week in honour of the Earthshot Innovation Summit, where he unveiled the finalists of his million-pound prize for climate and environmental innovations.

During his final engagements in the city, he also visited the New York City Fire Department’s Ten House Fire Station. In one video posted by a fan to X, formerly known as Twitter, he could also be seen smiling and shaking hands with onlookers outside of the firehouse.

Amid his greetings, one fan in the crowd gave William the perfect gift for him to bring home after his trip to the States: white shirts that each read “I [Heart] NY”. He went on to thank the fan for the shirts, before handing the clothing to a security guard.

According to the X user who shared the video, the gift actually included three shirts – one for each of William and his wife Kate Middleton’s three children: Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, eight, and Prince Louis, five.

Prince William gave a small shoutout to his family during a different conversation with someone in the crowd. When asked if he’d consider bringing his children to New York, he said that “one day [he’d] love to”.

In the comments of the tweet, many fans have gone on to praise William for his sweet interactions with the New York City crowd.

“I love how he is so down to earth and friendly with everyone, very much like his late mum [Princess Diana], he is going to be a brilliant King one day,” one wrote.

“How absolutely lovely to have His Royal Highness in the great city of New York!” another wrote, while a third added: “This is WONDERFUL!!!!”

During his visit to the firehouse, William also had some candid conversations with fellow firefighters in the station, as he asked the team: “How do you guys feel about mental health, is it something you guys talk about? Is there still a stigma?”

He then said it was important for them to speak about these issues so problems “don’t build up,” before speaking to a group of emergency responders about their training and normal day-to-day procedures.

As part of the visit, he was taken to the FDNY 9/11 Memorial Wall commemorating the firefighters who lost their lives in the terror attack. The Ten House Fire Station also has its own 9/11 memorial inside, which the prince was invited to view.

Along with his trip to the fire station, the prince took part in a fireside chat with previous Earthshot prize winner, Vaitea Cowan, during a summit at the Plaza Hotel on 19 September. During the chat, he confirmed that he’d started the day with a quintessential New York activity.

“I decided to join the hordes of New Yorkers doing their morning routine as they went round Central Park. It was wonderful waking up in New York on a sunny morning after the rain we had yesterday, and it was beautiful getting some fresh air this morning,” Prince William said.

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