Kate Middleton had a special connection with the royal family long before she met her husband, Prince William. The Duchess of Cambridge was one of the participants of Prince Philip's the Duke of Edinburgh Awards as a teenager.
In 2016, Middleton revealed that she completed the Bronze program before she continued and got her Gold Award. The Duke of Edinburgh program, devised by Philip in 1956, was an opportunity for the youth, in the ages of 14 to 24, to volunteer in a community, take part in team adventures and improve their physical abilities.
Kate Middleton said in an interview with Hello that her first experience with the program had her hiking during inclement weather and preparing meals outdoors at the camp. She said that Philip's program was a chance for young people to develop new skills, confidence and teamwork, and she had a great experience from the Duke of Edinburgh Award while growing up.
Philip believes that young people should have opportunities to "learn about life" and figure out what they should do as they develop their capabilities, so he set up the Duke of Edinburgh Awards. Otherwise, the young ones will not get ahead with life. The duke's program attracts over 1.3 million teens and young adults every year from the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth.
Middleton said she received her Gold status for the Duke of Edinburgh award and it's the only ceremony hosted by Philip. This means that Middleton was in the audience when the duke was giving out the certificates.
Meanwhile, Middleton's family connection with Philip also goes way back all the way to the 60s with her maternal grandfather, Peter Middleton. He was the pilot who flew alongside the Duke of Edinburgh during his two-month royal tour of South America in 1962.
Photos of Middleton's grandfather with the duke, as they waited to board the plane in Heathrow, have been trending online following Philip's death. Middleton's grandfather died in 2010 just a few months before her wedding to Prince William, where she became the Duchess of Cambridge. Incidentally, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will celebrate their 10-year wedding anniversary on April 29, or a few weeks after Philip passed away.
Kate Middleton will be joining Queen Elizabeth hours before the burial of Philip. She will be at the Galilee Porch with the rest of the royal family as they watch the procession of the duke's hearse from the private chapel in Windsor Castle to St. George's Chapel.
