SUPPORT OUR JOURNALISM: Please consider donating to keep our website running and free for all - thank you!

InterviewsSerbia

EXCLUSIVE: Crown Princess Katherine of Serbia talks charity with Royal Central

On Thursday of last week, Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine of Serbia held a gala dinner in London at the Berkeley Hotel. This year’s dinner was also a memorable evening for a good cause. It all started with a reception where the 200 guests were served with a drink and the opportunity to talk to the royals and other prominent guests. A three-course dinner followed.

During this event, Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Katherine made time to answer some exclusive questions from Royal Central’s Senior Europe Correspondent, Oskar Aanmoen who attended the dinner.

HRH Crown Princess Katherine of Serbia during the dinner. Photo: Oskar Aanmoen / Royal Central

What started your struggle to improve the lives of ordinary Serbians?

We want to help my country and the people of my country. When I was young, I was born in Greece and brought up there, I asked my mother what she wanted from me when I grow up. She said that is was only one thing she wanted from me; I want you to be a good example in life because we do not have enough good examples.  

Crown Princess, could you tell a bit more about your annual doctor conference?

I want to give a big thank you to the supporters of our organisation. It is a great pleasure to be able to help our country, our doctors and our nurses. Talking about doctors, I would like to tell you that we have a conference every year in Serbia. And we have normally 100 doctors from all over the world joining our 500 Serbian doctors. And our partners are the Ministry of Health and WHO. We work together to make this a successful conference because buying a lot of equipment is not the answer without training and education for our doctors. They are the best, and I am so proud of them. They have worked so hard. During our nation’s conflicts, they did not have what they needed. Still, they managed so well. I admire them, and now I want to help them as much as I can.

In addition, this year, you will host the first conference for nurses?

Yes. We also have a conference for nurses this year. Poor nurses, nobody pays any attention to them. They seem to be in the background sometimes, yet when the operation is finished the doctors call a nurse to take care of the patients. So for the first time, this April, we will have a conference for nurses. They are so excited; they are so thrilled about it. The knowledge we have is not only for us. The knowledge we have is something we need to pass on to others. And this is what we are trying to do.

Royal Central’s Senior Europe Correspondent, Oskar Aanmoen together with the Serbian Crown Prince and Crown Princess at the dinner in London. Photo: Oskar Aanmoen / Royal Central.

In 1993, Crown Princess Katherine founded the Lifeline Humanitarian Organisation which currently has offices in Chicago, New York, Toronto, London and Athens. This organisation, together with the HRH Crown Princess Katherine Foundation, works to collect money for medical equipment that has been delivered to numerous hospitals in Serbia.

Lifeline works directly with the HRH Crown Princess Katherine Foundation in Belgrade to provide critically needed humanitarian aid to the people of Serbia regardless of religion or ethnic origin, with a focus on aiding disabled children, orphans and working with medical institutions to improve health care throughout the country. If you want to read more about the HRH Crown Princess Katherine Foundation and the Lifeline Humanitarian Organisation, you can do so here.

About author

Senior Europe Correspondent Oskar Aanmoen has a master in military and political history of the Nordic countries. He has written six books on historical subjects and more than 1.500 articles for Royal Central. He has also interview both Serbian and Norwegian royals. Aanmoen is based in Oslo, Norway.