Harry and Meghan "humbled" to receive this award

The Duke And Duchess Of Sussex Visit New Zealand - Day 1

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 16 August 2022

A senior Archewell exec accepted it on their behalf.

With two young children at home and many projects in the works, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle can't overload their schedules with engagements.

While they are headed to the UK and Germany next month to attend a series of charity events, they made the decision to skip an awards ceremony in New York City this week, where they were set to receive the Human First Coalition Partner Organization Award for the support their Archewell Foundation has given to families in need in Aghanistan.

The royal couple entrusted Archewell's Executive Director James Holt with collecting the award on their behalf during the awards ceremony, which doubled as a cultural celebration of Afghanistan organised by the Human First Coalition.

In footage shared on Twitter by journalist R.S. Locke, James says: "The Duke and Duchess, Prince Harry and Meghan, wanted me to say that they are honoured and incredibly humbled by being recognised through the Foundation tonight."

He added: "They're sorry they can't be here in person, but they, like me, also believe that tonight's true honouree is Human First. In moments of crisis, at a time when we are faced with the worst of humanity, we also get to witness the greatest examples of courage, resilience and compassion."

The Sussexes partnered with the charity to share their Christmas card in 2021, which featured the first official photograph of their baby daughter Lilibet.

At the time, Human First wrote on Twitter alongside the image: "We're proud to partner with Archewell Foundation and Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Through a generous contribution this holiday season, they're providing care for families in need in Afghanistan & supporting life-saving efforts we are undertaking daily."

Though the Sussexes chose not to travel from their home in California to New York this time, they were last in the city fairly recently, when Prince Harry gave a speech at the United Nations on the occasion of Nelson Mandela Day.

We will continue to update this story.

Iris Goldsztajn is a celebrity and royal news writer for Marie Claire. As a London-based freelance journalist, she writes about wellness, relationships, pop culture, beauty and more for the likes of InStyle, Women's Health, Bustle, Stylist and Red. Aside from her quasi-personal investment in celebs' comings and goings, Iris is especially interested in debunking diet culture and destigmatising mental health struggles. Previously, she was the associate editor for Her Campus, where she oversaw the style and beauty news sections, as well as producing gift guides, personal essays and celebrity interviews. There, she worked remotely from Los Angeles, after returning from a three-month stint as an editorial intern for Cosmopolitan.com in New York. As an undergraduate at the University of California, Los Angeles, she interned at goop and C California Style and served as Her Campus' national style and LGBTQ+ editor. Iris was born and raised in France by a French father and an English mother. Her Spotify Wrapped is riddled with country music and One Direction, and she can typically be found eating her body weight in cheap chocolate.

Marie Claire Newsletter