Will and Kate to See USA 'Homeless Capital'
Prince William and Kate Middleton, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, are set to spend three days in the U.S. beginning on Friday, as part of a stopover tour from their Canada visit.
The royal couple arrive in Los Angeles on Friday and will host a polo match and dinner at the Santa Barbara Polo & Racket Club in Los Angeles. The Foundation, founded by Prince William and brother Harry, is a charitable organization that raises funds to help disadvantaged youth and women among other interests.
The polo match and dinner, which is a $4,000 a plate affair, is expected to raise $4.4 million for Prince William’s foundation, according to the Associated Press.
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On Saturday evening, the couple will attend a dinner and reception hosted by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts in downtown Los Angeles. The “BAFTA Brits to Watch” event aims to spotlight emerging British talent and build partnerships between Hollywood and up-and-coming British actors. Prince William serves as the organization’s president.
Prince William and Kate will also visit Skid Row. The area, composed of about fifty blocks in downtown Los Angeles, has been the nation’s homeless capital for decades. An estimated 4,000 people reside in the area and about 1,000 sleep on the street every night while others stay at shelters.
A plan is also scheduled to visit Inner-City Arts, a nonprofit academy that makes it possible for poor children to participate in free visual and performing arts classes. The royal couple will paint and work in ceramics alongside more than 100 grade school children and then watch a dance performance by a troupe of teenagers, according to the Associated Press.
Before heading back home Sunday, Prince William and Catherine will attend a private breakfast with American patrons of Tusk Trust, an African conservation charity.
Like his mother Princess Diana, Prince William has a strong focus on charities and helping those less fortunate and specifically tailored his visit to California to spend time bringing attention to issues affecting the poor and homeless.
The trip's emphasis on charity reflects the fundamental role of the modern British monarchy, especially that of the "satellite royals," the relatives who surround Queen Elizabeth II, Philippa Levine, co-director of the British studies program at the University of Texas at Austin, told the Associated Press.
