Princess Mary’s ‘desire to make a difference’ celebrated at overdue 50th birthday party

Crown Princess Mary of Denmark was finally able to celebrate her 50th birthday, after previous celebrations were postponed due to rampant Covid-19 cases in the country.

Mary, whose official birthday was last month, February 5, celebrated the special milestone on Wednesday, March 23, hosted by colleagues from her social and mental wellbeing charity The Mary Foundation.

The special event was held at Christian VII’s Palace in Amalienborg and saw touching tributes to the Princess’s “thorough” efforts to “fight social isolation based on the belief that everyone has the right to belong” as detailed on the foundation’s official site.

 

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Director of The Mary Foundation, Helle Østergaard, made a particularly powerful homage to the Princess, thanking Mary for her ‘burning desire’ to endorse change and her fierce commitment to the cause.

“Thank you to the Crown Princess for the great commitment, the thoroughness, the professionalism, the eternal presence and not least the burning desire to make a difference,” Østergaard said.

“This is what makes the difference for our work and for the people we are put in the world to make a positive difference for.”

Mary then addressed guests with a sincere thank you for their support and attendance at the special event.

Last month, Princess Mary was forced to cancel her birthday celebrations due to Covid-19 regulations. A gala banquet at Rosenborg Castle had been planned for February 4, 2022 in celebration of the milestone birthday before Mary and her husband, Prince Frederik announced the event would be postponed.

As part of her milestone celebrations, The Princess donated a generous $50,000 to Australia’s Alannah & Madeline Foundation, a charity dedicated to keeping children safe from bullying and protected from violence.

She revealed that the foundation’s program Better Buddies had inspired her to create her own initiative within The Mary Foundation called Free of Bullying, an anti-bullying program that has since been employed in over 50 per cent of Denmark’s childcare facilities and in a great number of the country’s schools and groups.

The Mary Foundation was launched in 2007 and dedicates itself to three main areas of focus including bullying and well-being, domestic violence, and loneliness.