During the late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations, Princess Kate paid a special visit to the Evelina London Children’s Hospital where she met with first-time mum Mischa Ward, 27, and her newborn daughter, Amaya-Rae.
The royal – who is a patron of the Evelina hospital – went out of her way to comfort little Amaya-Rae who was born 23 weeks early, weighing less than 1lb 8oz.
Mischa explained: “When the nurses told me she was in the hospital and wanted to meet Amaya-Rae, I completely panicked.
“She was in her nappy. I ran around finding something presentable for her to wear. But as soon as Kate walked in through the door, all the nervousness disappeared.”
Recalling her brush with royalty, Mischa went on to say: “She had such a calming, wonderful aura about her, she instantly made me feel so relaxed. It was like chatting with a friend.
“Amaya-Rae couldn’t take her eyes off her. She was transfixed and Kate smiled and chatted to her – it really felt that she genuinely cared about us.”
“There are some really dark days in a children’s hospital, and for our family – and lots of others – there isn’t much to look forward to. Everybody who met Kate said it gave them such a pick-me-up. She was a ray of sunshine in a really frightening time.”
After speaking with a group of children from St John’s Church of England Primary in Bethnal Green, Kate encouraged them to “keep talking about your feelings and keep asking others how they’re doing and helping them to talk about their feelings as well.”
The Princess added: “I’m a firm believer in giving children the skills that they need for life and focusing on their social and emotional development.”
