The Duke & Duchess of Sussex and Family, News and Events 3: March - April 2021

[US Royal Watcher]

It doesn't seem Archewell has any donors or at the moment mich really. It may have in the future but at the moment it isn't much.

You may be right but Harry and Meghan are obviously reaching out to corporations for positions, so they may well be fundraising at the same time. It would look good for them. It's good PR to be associated with charities. It is a 501(c)(3) organization, which means that it can accept tax deductible contributions.

Regardless, Archewell is a separate entity from Meghan and Harry, so the money is technically not coming out of their living expenses.

 

[Curryong]

This £10,000 is coming from the cookbook project started by Meghan when the Sussexes were still part of the Royal Foundation. When they left the Foundation the moneys from the couple’s various endeavours remained. The Community cookbook ‘Together’ (which was suggested by Meghan to the ladies at the Community Kitchen and adopted) made a large profit, is still selling and is still being doled out more than a year later, via the Royal Foundation. It will be shown in the verified accounts in July, along with all the other donations given via the Royal Foundation.

 

[poppy7]

I don't know how it's constituted, but the name "Foundation" suggests that it's a non profit making organisation.

I'm not sure about this because that would mean that all of their productions were not for profit and I persume they are. I dont joke if it is not for profit to be honest.

This £10,000 is coming from the cookbook project started by Meghan when the Sussexes were still part of the Royal Foundation. When they left the Foundation the moneys from the couple’s various endeavours remained. The Community cookbook ‘Together’ (which was suggested by Meghan to the ladies at the Community Kitchen and adopted) made a large profit, is still selling and is still being doled out more than a year later, via the Royal Foundation. It will be shown in the verified accounts in July, along with all the other donations given via the Royal Foundation.

Weren't the proceeds from that book,a fantastic idea by the way, put directly back into Grenfell. It isn't for it to be donated.

 

[US Royal Watcher]

I'm not sure about this because that would mean that all of their productions were not for profit and I persume they are. I dont joke if it is not for profit to be honest.

Archewell is actually three different entities. The donation comes from the foundation which is a nonprofit. In the U.S., the foundation can raise tax deductible contributions from other people and businesses. We don't know if that is what they are doing. There is also an Archewell Production and Archewell Audio, which are for profit and Harry and Meghan can use those funds for their personal expenses.
https://archewell.com/

 

[Curryong]

Weren't the proceeds from that book,a fantastic idea by the way, put directly back into Grenfell. It isn't for it to be donated.

A great deal of the profits did go back to the ladies of Grenfell. It expanded their kitchens and allowed them to feed people in the community for a year. I imagine that there was an agreement that some money could go to approved community projects elsewhere that fight prejudice and feed people. So this money was used for that.

 

[US Royal Watcher]

A great deal of the profits did go back to the ladies of Grenfell. It expanded their kitchens and allowed them to feed people in the community for a year. I imagine that there was an agreement that some money could go to approved community projects elsewhere that fight prejudice and feed people. So this money was used for that.

So the money did not come from Meghan and Harry personally, it came from people buying the book with the understanding that the profits would go to charity. That is fine, but it is different than Meghan and Harry using their own money.

 

[Curryong]

Archewell is actually three different entities. The donation comes from the foundation which is a nonprofit. In the U.S., the foundation can raise tax deductible contributions from other people and businesses. We don't know if that is what they are doing. There is also an Archewell Production and Archewell Audio, which are for profit and Harry and Meghan can use those funds for their personal expenses.
https://archewell.com/

The £10,000 donation doesn’t come from Archewell and is nothing to do with that Foundation. Because the Sussexes left GB before Archewell was set up all the moneys from their various endeavours were left in the care of the Royal Foundation.


As was made clear in the original tweet from Scobie that I linked here, the money comes from the Community Cookbook ‘Together’ which was a project of Meghan’s. Therefore the money comes from the profits of that book, via the Royal Foundation.

 

[Denville]

So Meghan hasn't donated the money...

 

[US Royal Watcher]

The £10,000 donation doesn’t come from Archewell and is nothing to do with that Foundation. Because the Sussexes left GB before Archewell was set up all the moneys from their various endeavours were left in the care of the Royal Foundation.


As was made clear in the original tweet from Scobie that I linked here, the money comes from the Community Cookbook ‘Together’ which was a project of Meghan’s. Therefore the money comes from the profits of that book, via the Royal Foundation.

Point taken. Either way, this was not a personal donation from Harry and Meghan. To answer Osipi's question, I think it does make a difference.

As an aside, I would be a little upset if I bought the book thinking the money would go to Grenfell but the money was given to another charity altogether.

 

[Curryong]

So the money did not come from Meghan and Harry personally, it came from people buying the book with the understanding that the profits would go to charity. That is fine, but it is different than Meghan and Harry using their own money.

Where on the original Tweet from Scobie that I linked did it state that the money was from Meghan or Harry’s own pockets? It was a project of Meghan’s when she was a working royal, and a very successful project at that.

 

[US Royal Watcher]

Where on the original Tweet from Scobie that I linked did it state that the money was from Meghan or Harry’s own pockets? It was a project of Meghan’s when she was a working royal, and a very successful project at that.

I wasn't discussing the tweet from Scobie.

 

[Denville]

The post said "Meghan has donated £10K" I would take that to mean that Meghan had given £10k of her own money.....

 

[poppy7]

Point taken. Either way, this was not a personal donation from Harry and Meghan. To answer Osipi's question, I think it does make a difference.

As an aside, I would be a little upset if I bought the book thinking the money would go to Grenell but the money was given to another charity altogether.

I do have the book and I bought it particulay because of Grenfell. I am not terribly happy about that.

 

[Curryong]

The post said "Meghan has donated £10K" I would take that to mean that Meghan had given £10k of her own money.....

The donation obviously did come from Meghan not an anonymous donor. It was from her project, the cookbook, but via the Royal Foundation Sussex moneys, and she would have been aware of the donation.

 

[duchessrachel]

I wouldn’t take Charles as a model of treating the Monarchy and the feelings of the people with respect. Yet he was forgiven and not cast out. One would presume he keeps this in mind.

Oh no. I was not suggesting that he had. I was just thinking about the future and how he has to consider the Monarchy at the same time as his family. Hopefully he has learned a few lessons.

 

[US Royal Watcher]

The donation obviously did come from Meghan not an anonymous donor. It was from her project, the cookbook, but via the Royal Foundation Sussex moneys, and she would have authorised the donation.

I don't think the donation obviously came from Meghan. The donation was authorized by Meghan. It's great that she wrote a book and dedicated the profits to the Grenfell organization, Charles did something similar with a children's book. The money came from the people who bought the book with the understanding that the money would go to Grenfell. Therefore, the money was not Meghan's to do with as she pleased, it had to go to a charity - otherwise it would be fraud.

 

[Curryong]

Most donations administered by The Royal Foundation aren’t direct donations from royal persons. They authorise them to be given to various charities. If there was anything wrong with the donation to the Nottingham project then we would have known about it.

Nowhere is it suggested that the £10,OOO was Meghan’s ‘to do what she pleased with’.


I personally find it terribly wearing when I post links to donations from Harry and Meghan, whether via Archewell or the Royal Foundation or out of their own pockets to do good for a community project or charity, and there are instantly questions about where the money came from. Individually and together the couple have donated out of their own pockets on several occasions. These have been documented here on the Sussex threads.


Neither Harry nor Meghan have ever been accused of financial fraud and they’ve always been clear about whether their donations have been from them, in Archie’s name, from Archewell or from various projects headed by them in the old Royal Foundation.

 

[tommy100]

There is a difference between a personal donation by the couple and a donation from a charitable enterprise (whether a book with profits going to charity or a foundation). It is still a good cause to donate to and a good thing to do, but a book who's profit has to go to charity giving charity money is not the same as someone giving their own money. But, again, a good thing for a good cause. TBF, the tweet from Omid and the article do make it sound at first as it is from Meghan personally until you read further.

 

[_Heather_]

There is a difference between a personal donation by the couple and a donation from a charitable enterprise (whether a book with profits going to charity or a foundation). It is still a good cause to donate to and a good thing to do, but a book who's profit has to go to charity giving charity money is not the same as someone giving their own money. But, again, a good thing for a good cause. TBF, the tweet from Omid and the article do make it sound at first as it is from Meghan personally until you read further.

Well, since Scobie is making an entire career out of being Meghan’s mouthpiece and cheerleader, this really surprises no one. It’s absolutely a worthy cause and it’s certainly a generous donation but the fact remains that it’s important to be open and transparent about who or where the funds came from.

 

[tommy100]

I completely agree - and isn't it a shame that the obvious PR spin being put on it is somewhat detracting from the very worthwhile donation. That is something H&M and their team need to work on IMO - not turning everything into being about them.

 

[Curryong]

I don’t know about ‘PR spin’, Omar tweeted about that donation on his Twitter Page just as he also announces donations and charity projects from KP, BP etc. Also, none of the tabloids had printed anything about the donation, which is why I posted Scobie’s Tweet. It’s hardly a huge PR exercise if a donation is first announced by a Tweet via one royal reporter out of a dozen.

[...]

 

[Roslyn]

The post said "Meghan has donated £10K" I would take that to mean that Meghan had given £10k of her own money.....

This is what I took "Meghan has donated £10K" to mean. I thought, 'That's generous of her'. And now I learn it wasn't from her at all, but a donation from a pool of funds that seems to have been received from others to be donated for charitable purposes. A very different kettle of fish and misleading.

 

[Estel]

This is what I took "Meghan has donated £10K" to mean. I thought, 'That's generous of her'. And now I learn it wasn't from her at all, but a donation from a pool of funds that seems to have been received from others to be donated for charitable purposes. A very different kettle of fish and misleading.

I agree. It is certainly misleading, and it becomes really tiresome where everything becomes about Meghan.
The point is, the donation has come from somebody else, which was directed elsewhere by Meghan. It was never hers to donate in the first place.

 

[Curryong]

The donation was from the profits of Together, the Hubb cookbook which was Meghan’s project with the Hubb ladies. She authorised the donation, via the Royal Foundation because it had been her project. And if she hadn’t suggested the cookbook to those women and been involved with it from the beginning, they would have been no money to donate anywhere to any charity in the first place.

 

[Royalist.in.NC]

I dont think so..not for a long time. Harry's admitted that his father stopped taking his calls a while ago. Considering that he has been very indulgent towards his son, I think that shows how angry and upset he is and how he feels that its not possible to talk sensibly to H. And now, Harry has humiliated him, insinuated that he or SOME member of his family, is a racist, that he wants to deprive his grandson of security... etc etc. I think it is very clear that the RF are furious and feel they can't trust H.. and they'll be very wary with him from now on.

I agree, especially since Gayle King reported on their conversation. Rebuilding trust will take a long time IMO

 

[Curryong]

As distinct from Charles own conversations with Jonathon Dimbleby in a book in which he blasted his own parents.

And how do we know that since Gayle King spoke that Harry and Charles’s haven’t spoken? We know next to nothing about contact between members of the Royal Family. And if we take Harry’s own words about he and his grandmother they certainly have an excellent relationship. So HM certainly trusts her grandson. As seen with Charles, familial relationships go up and down over the years.

 

[Roslyn]

I agree. It is certainly misleading, and it becomes really tiresome where everything becomes about Meghan.
The point is, the donation has come from somebody else, which was directed elsewhere by Meghan. It was never hers to donate in the first place.

After posting I hunted around Twitter for the source article and found it. The Harper's Bazaar article makes it clear that the money came from the Royal Foundation and goes on, "Her donation uses additional proceeds raised from her popular recipe book, Together: Our Community Cookbook, which she published in 2018 to benefit Hubb Community Kitchen".

I think it would be a very good idea if Meghan started tightening things up a bit. Everything she says and does seems to be rather loose, for want of a better word, which gives rise to ambiguity when precision and clarity is needed. Just look at all the dozens of pages of discussion that were generated by that Oprah interview, mainly because of her lack attention to detail about very important matters, which has had people questioning what she meant. Or maybe that was the intent, to keep her name in the news. I don't pretend to know, but I do think she needs better advice, and staff who can make sure the information that is released about them is accurate and unambiguous.

As distinct from Charles own conversations with Jonathon Dimbleby in a book in which he blasted his own parents.

And how do we know that since Gayle King spoke that Harry and Charles’s haven’t spoken? We know next to nothing about contact between members of the Royal Family. And if we take Harry’s own words about he and his grandmother they certainly have an excellent relationship. So HM certainly trusts her grandson. As seen with Charles, familial relationships go up and down over the years.

Didn't Harry state in the Oprah interview that he and his father had started talking again?

 

[Eskimo]

I think they can do so for a time.. but what If Harry's not very good at this being a face thing? What if he indiscreetly says something critical about his new employer? What if people DO start to question some fo the things that were said in the interview and begin to see him in a new light and he's less popular. Even if it is not exaclty hard work, Harry is new to having some job/commitment where he doesn't have staff minding him and making him appear to the best light. He may find endless re takes of a TV appearance tiresome and be told "suck it up and do it" and now he will have to..
I thoguht that he was basiclaly not bright but a good tempered guy.. now I can see the anger and volatilty adn hostility that simmer beneath...

That’s what happens when you make arch enemies out of the tabloids. They’re are not going to rest until they destroy any sympathy and likability that H&M have, which can have nothing but bad consequences for their popularity

 

[Curryong]

Thank you for that. So, as the article makes clear, it was Meghan’s donation. From the additional proceeds from ‘Together’ the community cookbook that was very much her project.

The Royal Foundation kept the Sussex projects money under their umbrella when the Sussexes left GB as they had not able to use Sussex Royal as a Foundation and Archewell had not yet been created.

Didn't Harry state in the Oprah interview that he and his father had started talking again?

Yes, but then Gayle came out after the interview had aired and said calls between Harry and his father and brother hadn’t been ‘productive’.
That doesn’t mean of course that they aren’t speaking to each other as of now.

 

[Erin9]

There is a difference between a personal donation by the couple and a donation from a charitable enterprise (whether a book with profits going to charity or a foundation). It is still a good cause to donate to and a good thing to do, but a book who's profit has to go to charity giving charity money is not the same as someone giving their own money. But, again, a good thing for a good cause. TBF, the tweet from Omid and the article do make it sound at first as it is from Meghan personally until you read further.

My thoughts exactly.