Meghan Markle.Photo:Matt Sayles
Matt Sayles
Meghan Marklepaid a visit to a new key program of the Archewell Foundation she shares withPrince Harry.
Over the weekend, the Duchess of Sussex, 42, visited the Southern CaliforniaWelcome Projectfor “an evening of cooking and storytelling.” The update came through anews poston therecently refreshed websiteof the charitable organization that Prince Harry and Meghan founded in 2020 after stepping back from their royal roles.
Meghan Markle.Matt Sayles
The post explained that Mina’s List has been working with women activists and political leaders in Afghanistan since 2014 to advocate for greater gender equality. The nonprofit helped evacuate and resettle over 2,000 Afghan women and families in 2021, with many resettling in Southern California. According to the update, “Mina’s List and The Archewell Foundation joined forces to provide community and support to these remarkable women as they begin to rebuild their lives in the U.S.”
Dubbed The Welcome Project, the program supports “women-led programming for recently resettled Afghan women to help build more inclusive and connected communities."
Joshua Sammer/Getty
There are currently 11 active Welcome Projects across the U.S. “designed to foster a sense of belonging” through activities including sewing, art, hiking, swimming, photography, storytelling and cooking.
The hubs are being run in Oakland, California; Orange County, California; Missoula, Montana; San Antonio, Texas; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Washington, D.C., South Bend, Indiana; Clarkston, Georgia; Lynn, Massachusetts; Sterling, Virginia and Arlington, Virginia — adding background to where Meghan visited.
After hearing repeatedly about the “intense social isolation women in particular were experiencing,” the Archewell Foundation launched The Welcome Project this year, the Impact Report outlined. With its focused programming, the venture brings access to critical resources, educational opportunities, workforce development, employment, and entrepreneurship, the report states.
In a full-circle connection to the Hubb Community Kitchen, the report also revealed that the Welcome Project uses food to bring people together. Beyond each focused project, “Welcome Dinners” are held to bring participants together over a meal.
In 2018, the Duchess of Sussex was instrumental in the release ofTogether: Our Community Cookbookafter cooking with a group of women who suffered after theGrenfell Tower tragedyat the Hubb Community Kitchen. Meghan wrote the foreword for the collection of 50 recipes, and a portion of the proceeds benefitted the community cooking space.
Meghan Markle at the Hubb Community Kitchen in 2018.CHRIS JACKSON/AFP via Getty
The Hubb Community Kitchen was formed at the Al Manaar Muslim Cultural Heritage Centre in London in 2017 to provide a community support network for survivors of theGrenfell Tower tragedy. That June, a blaze tragically ripped through the 24-story apartment building in West London and killed 72 people.
During herfirst visitto the community kitchen in January 2018, the Duchess of Sussex learned that the women there were only able to use the space twice a week due to funding. Inspired, she was instrumental in the release ofTogether: Our Community Cookbooklater that year, with a portion of the proceeds going towards the cause. Kensington Palace said the profits would help the kitchen open for up to seven days a week and widen its community reach.
Meghan wrote the foreword for the collection of 50 recipes, and the project made a splash as her first major solo charity project as the Duchess of Sussex following her royal wedding to Prince Harry in May 2018.
Meghan Markle at the launch of Together: Our Community Cookbook in 2018.Ben Stansall - WPA/Getty
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The Duchess of Sussex has stayed in touch with the women of the Hubb Community Kitchen since, from hopping on avideo callfrom her California home in 2020 and sending avoice messageon the fifth anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire in 2022.
Fast forward to the present, and the news post on Meghan’s visit to a California Welcome Project arrives as part of a larger makeover to the Archewell Foundation website. As of Monday, the site has been expanded with features on programs, impact, updates and more.
“Show Up, Do Good. We believe in the power of community as a transformative solution for our collective wellbeing,” reads a quote on the landing page.
“Each of us can change our communities. All of us can change the world,” says a second message attributed to the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
source: people.com
