Prince Harry’s Shocking Skydive Promise to a 102-Year-Old Veteran Takes an Unexpected Turn
Prince Harry is set to complete a charity skydive later this month, fulfilling a pledge he made to 102-year-old Canadian World War Two veteran Ed Marshall.
The Duke of Sussex will undertake the jump to raise funds for Sunnybrook, which operates Canada’s largest veterans’ care facility, and the True Patriot Love Foundation, the country’s foundation supporting the military community.
The pair hatched the plan when they met at Sunnybrook Hospital’s veterans centre in Toronto last November.
Mr Marshall’s grandson Bailey will accompany Harry on the jump, as the centenarian himself will not be taking part this time around.
Prince Harry is set to complete a charity skydive later this month, fulfilling a pledge he made to 102-year-old Canadian World War Two veteran Ed Marshall
| GETTY
During his visit to the veterans centre last November, the Duke of Sussex struck up an immediate rapport with Mr Marshall.
According to the Sunnybrook Foundation, “they quickly bonded over their shared experience of military service and the way they have continued to serve their communities.”
Both men have extensive armed forces backgrounds; Mr Marshall trained as a paratrooper during World War Two, while Harry served a decade in the British Army.
The Duke’s military career included two operational tours in Afghanistan, where he worked as a Forward Air Controller and flew Apache helicopters. That common ground laid the foundation for their charitable collaboration.
Prince Harry pictured speaking with war veterans Ozzie Reece and Ed Marshall in Toronto last September
| REUTERS
Mr Marshall left a strong impression on the Duke when he recounted a fundraising skydive he had completed to celebrate turning 100.
As the Sunnybrook Foundation noted, “the idea stuck, and together, they devised a plan for another jump.” Though Mr Marshall will not be leaping from a plane himself at 102, his grandson Bailey is stepping in to take his place alongside Harry.
The veteran expressed confidence in his grandson’s readiness for the challenge: “My grandson, he’s never jumped before, but he has the right attitude about this, and I hope he enjoys it.”
A precise date and location for the skydive have yet to be announced, but it is understood to be occurring later this month.
Prince Harry is set to complete a charity skydive later this month, fulfilling a pledge he made to 102-year-old Canadian World War Two veteran Ed Marshall.
The Duke of Sussex will undertake the jump to raise funds for Sunnybrook, which operates Canada’s largest veterans’ care facility, and the True Patriot Love Foundation, the country’s foundation supporting the military community.
The pair hatched the plan when they met at Sunnybrook Hospital’s veterans centre in Toronto last November.
Mr Marshall’s grandson Bailey will accompany Harry on the jump, as the centenarian himself will not be taking part this time around.
Prince Harry is set to complete a charity skydive later this month, fulfilling a pledge he made to 102-year-old Canadian World War Two veteran Ed Marshall
| GETTY
During his visit to the veterans centre last November, the Duke of Sussex struck up an immediate rapport with Mr Marshall.
According to the Sunnybrook Foundation, “they quickly bonded over their shared experience of military service and the way they have continued to serve their communities.”
Both men have extensive armed forces backgrounds; Mr Marshall trained as a paratrooper during World War Two, while Harry served a decade in the British Army.
The Duke’s military career included two operational tours in Afghanistan, where he worked as a Forward Air Controller and flew Apache helicopters. That common ground laid the foundation for their charitable collaboration.
Prince Harry pictured speaking with war veterans Ozzie Reece and Ed Marshall in Toronto last September
| REUTERS
Mr Marshall left a strong impression on the Duke when he recounted a fundraising skydive he had completed to celebrate turning 100.
As the Sunnybrook Foundation noted, “the idea stuck, and together, they devised a plan for another jump.” Though Mr Marshall will not be leaping from a plane himself at 102, his grandson Bailey is stepping in to take his place alongside Harry.
The veteran expressed confidence in his grandson’s readiness for the challenge: “My grandson, he’s never jumped before, but he has the right attitude about this, and I hope he enjoys it.”
A precise date and location for the skydive have yet to be announced, but it is understood to be occurring later this month.
Harry served in the British Army in Afghanistan | PA
Speaking to CTV News, the veteran shared that he found Prince Harry to be “a nice guy, so I told him I was planning on jumping again and he said, ‘well I’ll join you,’ so I took him up on that.”
At the time, Mr Marshall assumed the Duke of Sussex was being polite; however, Prince Harry called the centenarian two weeks ago to confirm his participation in the big jump.
The event could represent a significant moment for the Duke, as it may be his first public engagement since relocating back to the United Kingdom.
Harry was last seen in an official capacity in Washington, DC, where he spent time with veterans and their families.
The fundraising jump will benefit both Sunnybrook and the True Patriot Love Foundation, reinforcing the Duke’s longstanding commitment to supporting military communities on both sides of the Atlantic.
