"Anywhere I see suffering, that is where I want to be, doing what I can.”
– Princess Diana
Diana, a Humanitarian
Diana, Princess of Wales, and Mother Teresa of Calcutta walked hand-in-hand through the streets of New York’s Bronx on Tuesday, June 17, 1997. Little did we know at the time the two women would die less than three months later and five days apart.
To this day, no one has even come close to filling the shoes of these two iconic women.
Diana’s charity work put “celebrity” on the map and connected her with Mother Teresa forever. Thanks to Diana, most modern celebrities find a platform to use their celebrity voice in ways to help others. We are passionate about preserving Diana’s legacy of helping others in need.
Diana was a proficient gift giver. Diana knew the power she had attending charities to bring awareness to them. She donated many of her personal items to raise money as well as gift them to people who were sick or suffering. The Queen of Hearts Gallery displays numerous items gifted by Diana to raise money.
The Shawl
This fine wool shawl with embroidered yellow, purple and white silk decoration and floral borders was presented to the princess by Imam Abdul Qadir in the courtyard of the Badshahi Mosque on her state visit to Pakistan in 1991.
Diana immediately wrapped it around her head with the Imam’s help. He told her about the symbolic nature of this gift: long ago, the Prophet gave a Christian girl a black shawl as a symbol of the unity between their two religions.
Upon her return to England, the Princess gave the shawl to her friend and acupuncturist Oonagh Shanley-Toffolo who cherished it until her death in August 2015.
When you visit our Princess Diana Museum you will see the original “Red Cross Patches” worn during her visit to bring awareness to landmines in Angola, signed photos of both Mother Teresa and Princess Diana, Sri Chinmoy’s visit to Kensington Palace, and Diana’s spiritual connection with her acupuncturist Oonagh Shanley-Toffolo and her husband Joe. When Joe underwent heart surgery, Diana met Hasnat Khan, the heart surgeon who would become her lover for over three years.
Image courtesy of Kent Gavin. When you visit The Princess Diana Museum be sure to listen for his interview about his time photographing the Princess and what they spoke about coming back from Pakistan.
Red Cross patch and one gold small cross was gifted to a Red Cross Youth member. The youth, who was a long term member was unable to help on an organized event due to a car accident. Diana showed up to her home one day with a special gift which was her folders and Red Cross patch from a trip she did in early 1990's.
A pair of sterling silver cuff-links with "D" engraved, accompanied by a copy of a letter from HRH Princess Diana dated February 3, 1997, to Angela stating that she enjoyed working alongside her with the homeless and was sending a few items for her charity dinner and auction to help with the proceeds.
The cross and box were gifted to Diana on one of her trips to India by Sister Agnes. It was given to a special friend Irene who was very ill and later passed away.
Visit The Princess Diana Museum to see the fine wool shawl (pictured above) gifted to Oonagh after a trip to Pakistan, a Pavarotti book gifted to Joe, and much more.
