Meghan Markle’s skiing posse: How the Duchess found a core group of friends in Heather Dorak and Kelly McKee Zajfen following ‘Megxit’- and the Sussexes supported the former model after her 9-year-old son’s death

Meghan Markle enjoyed a ski trip with her close friends Kelly McKee Zajfen and Heather Dorak.

The Duchess of Sussex, 42, was pictured laughing with Pilates entrepreneur Dorak and former model Zajfen on the slopes of Powder Mountain near Salt Lake City in Utah, in an Instagram post shared by the Pilates Platinum founder.

The trio have been ‘best friends’ for a long time. Meghan first met Heather in 2005 when the pilates and yoga instructor became the former actress during her time on US legal drama Suits.

Kelly and Meghan, meanwhile, became close through the duchess’s ex-husband Engelson, who is friends with the former model’s entertainment lawyer Julian.

Meghan has supported Kelly through the grief of losing her son George, who died aged nine in July 2022 after being found unconscious in their family home.

Kelly — co-founder of the Alliance of Moms group that supports pregnant teens and teens in the Los Angeles foster care system — has been open about her grief on Instagram, writing in October 2022 that she was “not really doing well.”

The parent – who is also mum to George’s twin sister Lily – said: ‘The light is dim every day. I’m trying my best. We all do our best. I’m so broken.

“Every day I look for a new way to put the pieces back together and I am fully aware that it may not all fit again.”

Harry and Meghan donated $5,000 to a GoFundMe fundraiser in the names of their children Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet after the Zajfen family lost George.

In May, Kelly posted a heartfelt tribute to Meghan, praising the Duchess for her support and for being such an “incredible friend and mother.”

“You are always the first to say yes and support the people you love. You are a fierce advocate for those in need,” Kelly continued, sharing a photo of herself and the Duchess both wearing “Community Motherhood” T-shirts in support of an Alliance of Moms campaign.

As for Heather, she attended Meghan and Harry’s wedding in Windsor in May 2018 with her husband Matt Cohen.

Originally from Texas, she is now based in California where she owns six studios under the Pilates Platinum brand.

Heather was spotted walking with Meghan near the royal couple’s country home after they celebrated Archie’s fourth birthday.

The pair also appeared together on Meghan’s social media before she deleted her accounts after her wedding.

The pilates instructor moved to LA with aspirations of a professional dance career. However, an injury inspired her to take up Pilates after a doctor recommended it.

Heather became Meghan’s coach many years ago when she worked on the TV show Suits.

In a 2015 social media post, Heather said she was celebrating ten years of friendship with Meghan, adding that she was “one of my first clients.”

The pair have shared vacations and days out together, including a trip to a Vancouver Canucks hockey game in 2015.

Heather also attended Meghan’s 2015 speech at the 20th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference of Women in Beijing in New York City, along with Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland.

Heather contributed fitness expertise to Meghan’s former lifestyle blog The Tig before closing it.

She has been a key part of Meghan’s North American inner circle since Megxit, when she visited the royal couple in Canada in January 2020, shortly after they left the United Kingdom after stepping back as senior royals.

Heather wrote on Instagram this week about their recent ski trip: ‘Wow, what a perfect trip!! My heart is so full.

‘During the day the children smashed the slopes and the adults cried with laughter long into the night. I’m really lucky in love with our wonderful friends!’

The trio of friends were seen in the post’s photo wearing oversized coats, gloves, sunglasses and hats – while Heather also posted photos of her family members on the trip.

Kelly also shared the photo in her own Instagram post, writing, “Beyond grateful for the best of friends! What a journey! Thank you, it doesn’t even begin to express what my heart feels after this journey.

‘The love for family time, adventure and belly laughs made this trip one for the books! Here’s to many more adventures with friends who feel like family and enjoy every day.’

It comes two weeks after Meghan was pictured with Prince Harry on the slopes of Whistler in Canada for an event that was still a year away from the next Invictus Games.

Since the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s visit to Whistler last month, Meghan has appeared via videolink in North West London to open a new wing of the Mayhew Veterinary Clinic on February 21.

This was announced via the new Sussex.com website she launched with Harry, which immediately became controversial due to the prominence of the royal branding.

This week, a video also emerged of Meghan cooking traditional Afghan food with a group of 15 women who have settled in the US from Afghanistan – although this was from a previous visit to the Southern California Welcome Project on February 10.

On Wednesday, Harry lost his High Court case against the Home Office over a decision to change the level of his personal security when he visits Britain.

The duke later said he would appeal the ruling after taking legal action against the government department over a February 2020 decision that he should receive a different level of taxpayer-funded protection in Britain.

The Duke briefly returned to Britain without his family on February 6 after taking a transatlantic flight to be with his father following news of the King’s cancer diagnosis.

Harry later gave an interview to ABC’s Good Morning America while in Whistler, in which he insisted “I love my family” and that he “jumped on a plane” to visit the king “as soon as I could” after arriving the phone had talked about his cancer diagnosis. .

The Duke also revealed he was ‘grateful’ to have seen Charles in person and hopes the diagnosis can have a ‘reuniting effect’ on the royal family.

Harry and Meghan are living in the US with their two children Archie and Lilibet after the couple announced they would be stepping back as senior royals in January 2020.