Heartwarming new images of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s surprise visit to the family of a woman killed in the Uvalde school shooting have been shared by the late teacher’s cousin in a touching birthday tribute to his mother.
Irma Garcia courageously sacrificed her own life during the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Texas in May 2022 in an effort to keep her young students safe. Then, just two days later, her husband Joe tragically died of a heart attack.
Last weekend, Harry, 39, and Meghan, 42, paid a surprise visit to Irma’s sister at her home, delivering a cake and flowers before singing ‘Happy Birthday’ in honor of her special day.
Now, her son, Johannes Martinezhas shared several new images from the Sussexes’ visit to his home – one of which captures the heartwarming moment Meghan pulled his mother into a big hug.
Heartwarming new images capture the sweet moment Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made a surprise visit to the family of a woman killed in the Uvalde school shooting
The photos, shared by hero teacher Irma Garcia’s nephew, show Meghan, 42, warmly embracing the late teacher’s sister as she marks her birthday
“My mom wanted me to post these as her birthday pictures,” her son, John Martinez, 22, wrote, sharing the images on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The first of the photos showed Meghan and John’s mother posing together at a local event honoring the shooting victims, while another photo, taken at his home, shows Meghan and Harry standing next to the birthday boy.
In the image, John’s mother can be seen posing proudly with a large bouquet of roses, which was delivered to her by the Sussexes, while Meghan holds up a white frosted birthday cake topped with several strawberries.
Meanwhile, Harry, looking casual in a blue sweater and dark gray jeans, stands with his arm around John’s mother.
The new images come just days after John first shared a glimpse into the surprise visit to Sussex – revealing a heartwarming video of the moment Meghan and Harry sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to his mother in the family kitchen.
Meghan was seen holding a cake with candles for John’s mother, before turning to Harry to check he was still there and calling him ‘my love’.
John, 22, shared the first photos and videos of the royals’ visit to his home on X, where he expressed his surprise at how “loving and supportive” the Sussexes had been to his family.
He said Harry and Meghan coming to their home felt “like having family and friends over” and that they “fit in well.”
Meghan also posed with Irma’s sister at a local event honoring the victims of the May 2022 mass shooting
Earlier this week, images were released showing Harry and Meghan with the mother of Layla Salazar, who was tragically killed in the Uvalde shooting
During the local event, the Sussexes were seen hugging families to support the families of the shooting victims
John explained that the couple surprised his mother with a cake, while videos showed a glowing Meghan smiling warmly as she held the white dessert.
She and Harry – who stood among their family in the kitchen – led the singing as they joined the heartwarming scene.
Meghan lit the candles on the cake and started the countdown singing Happy Birthday before saying “and everyone sang too,” to which a family member replied: “You’re first and then we’ll go after!”
The actress looked cheerful as she held the decorated cake, while her husband Prince Harry stood smiling in the background.
And as they shared “intimate memories,” John said they shared “tears of joy” with the Montecito couple.
“Meghan Markle singing my mom happy birthday was the cutest and cutest thing ever, she even bought her a cake,” wrote Ms. Garcia’s grateful cousin.
In a conversation with HELLO! John added: ‘It really meant something to the world that Harry and Meghan turned up to visit the family, there were lots of tears of joy and heartfelt moments.
‘They were the kindest, most humble people ever, it was like having family and friends over and having a great time together.
“They fit right in, we laughed a lot and shared intimate memories together.”
The latest photos were shared by Irma’s cousin, John Martinez, who praised Harry and Meghan for their “love and support”
Prince Harry and Meghan timed their visit to coincide with John’s mother’s birthday, with the couple even bringing them a birthday cake
John explained that the pair had kept in regular “contact” with the Garcia family since the senseless shooting.
“They keep in touch every other month, sometimes a little longer, but their busy lives really made their visit feel more special,” he said.
On May 24, 2022, 19 children and two teachers were killed after a gunman walked into Robb Elementary School in Texas and started shooting.
One of the children, 10 years old, aspired to become a lawyer and another wanted to become a marine biologist.
A third student had saved money to go to Disney World. But they never got the chance to travel.
Meghan visited Uvalde just two days after the shooting, offered her condolences and placed a bouquet of white roses, tied with a purple ribbon, at the cross for 10-year-old Uziyah Garcia.
A spokesperson for the Sussexes told the newspaper that Meghan had gone there unannounced to privately express her condolences.
It is believed that after the visit, the Duchess went to the Herby Ham Activity Center to deliver crates of food and drink to blood donors.
Harry and Meghan’s trip to Texas — which also coincided with the Duchess of Sussex’s keynote appearance at the SXSW festival in Austin last Friday — came just days before the former Suits star announced a new lifestyle venture on Instagram.
The mother of two made the announcement about the launch of her new business, called American Riviera Orchard, on Instagram on Thursday – while also publishing her new website.
The Duchess of Sussex has announced the launch of her new lifestyle brand American Riviera Orchard, which she has trademarked for a range of products from jams to cookbooks
While little was revealed about the brand on its website and social media account, an insider told the Daily Mail that American Riviera Orchard will be a “lifestyle and cooking brand” centered around her passions.
The new lifestyle website and brand launch comes seven years after Meghan closed her popular blog The Tig, which she ran while starring in hit legal drama Suits.
Meghan used the website to document her travels, favorite foods, fashion recommendations and even guest posts from her famous friends.
However, shortly after Meghan and Harry made their relationship public, the Duchess closed the website.
Although her latest launch is already being dubbed ‘The Tig 2.0’, American Riviera Orchard will actually extend far beyond the realm of a lifestyle blog, with trademark application documents for the company revealing Meghan’s plans to release a wide range of products and books . .
Documents obtained by DailyMail.com show that the Duchess has applied for trademarks for everything from ‘edible oils and fats’ to jellies, jams, spreads, nut butters, cookware and books.
Brand expert Hayley Knight told DailyMail.com that Meghan is likely to earn six figures within weeks of her brand’s official launch.
“We have seen in the past that everything Meghan wears, promotes and sells out immediately, and there are websites dedicated to ‘What Meghan Wears’ that demonstrate her brand power,” Knight said.
She added that Meghan had “incredibly strong” instincts when it came to PR and marketing, and “wouldn’t have launched this if she didn’t think it would work.”