Prince Harry has praised the "resilience" of young people amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The 35-year-old royal spoke in a video message which was played on Sunday (10.05.20) by the charitable organisation OnSide – which aims to build a network of "Youth Zones" in "deprived areas" that offer young people a place to do something and have someone to talk to during their free time – ahead of a stream of last year’s OnSide Awards.
And in the message, Harry praised the "strength" and "determination" of the young people helped by the charity, as he said the global health crisis is likely to have made life "even more challenging" for them.
He said: "Hi guys! Just a few months ago, we were all together in London at the OnSide Youth Zones Awards and, wow, what a night that was. I remember meeting so many incredible people and hearing your stories – stories of strength, of determination, of resilience but ultimately of courage. And as I said to you on that night, and I will repeat it again, hats off to every single one of you for surviving but also for thriving.
"These stories and these daily challenges that you guys are coming up against are unbelievable, and so many people would never understand. But you guys have the strength to pull through, and you have the support of the OnSide community, the OnSide family to help you through that process."
The royal insisted the members of the OnSide Youth Zones will overcome the challenges imposed by the pandemic, and said they would be back to having "the best time ever" in no time.
He explained: "This too shall pass. And before you know it, you will be back together again, probably in a Youth Zone, you know, running around, having the best time ever."
Harry then introduced the stream of last year’s OnSide Awards – which he attended in November 2019 – and encouraged viewers to "have fun" and to "soak up the positivity of this night because it really was amazing."
Prince Harry praises the ‘resilience’ of young people
