Duke of Edinburgh’s Award star to pay tribute to way he changed countless lives
A star of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award will speak at Tuesday's memorial service to Prince Philip to tell attendees how the scheme changed millions of lives.
Doyin Sonibare, from Barking, east London, will speak at the Westminster Abbey service of thanksgiving and is expected to pay tribute to the way in which the award has benefited young people around the world.
Ms Sonibare, who holds a Gold DofE Award, will tell the audience how the skills she learned from the scheme helped her secure her first job at 18. She is now an account executive at a computer software company and a PhD candidate studying sickle cell research and health inequalities.
"It's a huge honour to speak at the service and reflect on the amazing impact the Duke's legacy has had on me and millions of others, and will go on having for future generations," she said.
"When I look back at the last decade, I've achieved so much more than I thought I could – and it's down to my DofE and the opportunity it gave me. At times like these, with so much uncertainty and upheaval, it's so important all young people get opportunities like this so they have every chance to fulfil their potential too."
The scheme was set up by Prince Philip in 1956 to support young people's development and involves a combination of outdoor expeditions, physical fitness, personal skills and social work. He had been encouraged to set it up by Kurt Hahn, his former headmaster at Gordonstoun.
In the years since, more than 6.7 million young people in the UK have achieved at least a bronze-level DofE award, while the scheme has expanded to 130 countries.
The Duke remained invested in the award throughout his life and took an interest in participants wherever he found them – even if it wasn't always shared.
In a BBC documentary to celebrate the Duke's life, broadcast last year, the Duke of Cambridge recounted how Prince Philip had once spotted a group of DofE children on an expedition in Scotland and pulled his car over for a chat.
"He said: 'Good morning how are you getting on?', to which the smallest young chap at the back effectively said: 'Jog on, grandpa!' To which my grandfather wound the window back up, drove off smiling and said to everyone in the car: 'The youth of today!'"
