London: She drilled into him the importance of being a Prince of Wales and maintaining his links with the country. Princess Diana continues to be her elder son's role model as he is determined to carry on her legacy in helping those less fortunate.

Not long after she had lost close friend Adrian Ward-Jackson to AIDS (Acquired Immuno-Deficiency Syndrome) in 1991, the late princess backed with all her heart the charities, which helped sufferers and researched a cure. And who better to inform her than singing legend Elton John, who had founded the Elton John Aids Foundation. So she asked William to join her for a special lunch at Kensington Palace with Elton John and his partner David Furnish.

William's first major contribution to the cause of AIDS patients was the suggestion that the princess auction a collection of her dresses in New York, which raised 1.8 million Pounds for AIDS charities, says a report in 'The Mirror'.

Not only did the princess open her son's eyes to the disease, she deliberately transported him away from the opulence of his royal world to the gutter-existence of the homeless in London.

Dressed in jeans and sweatshirts, mother and son, accompanied by a police protection officer, visited the shadows of Charring Cross and King's Cross railway stations in the dead of night. It all left a mark on William's instinctive caring nature.

Following the princess's death in 1997, William said, "I want to be able to carry on with the things she didn't quite finish. She got close to people and chose the charities and organisations that everybody else was scared to go near."

According to the report, to mark his 21st birthday week, he is visiting a hostel for the homeless and an agricultural show in Wales – a day of engagements, which reflects what his mother would have wanted.

ANI