Prince William to help fight homelessness in new patronage

Feb. 13 (UPI) -- Prince William became the patron of charity organization The Passage on Wednesday.

The Passage, established in 1980, is Britain's largest resource center for homeless and insecurely housed people.

The organization has helped over 130,000 people through its resource center, homelessness prevention projects and accommodation services.

William, who first visited The Passage as a child in 1993 with his late mother, Princess Diana, has frequently supported charities that work to combat homelessness. The duke of Cambridge is also a patron of Centrepoint which helps young homeless people.

"The visits I made as a child to this place left a deep and lasting impression upon me -- about how important it is to ensure that everyone in our society, especially the poorest, are treated with respect, dignity and kindness, and are given the opportunities to fulfill their potential in life," William said previously while visiting The Passage in 2016.

William's sister-in-law, Meghan Markle, became the patron of four charities in January that support the arts, access to education, women and animal welfare.