THE KING AND I

The Last Word

THE KING AND I

How I found my 23rd cousin, the Crown Prince of Serbia, and his quest to rebuild a nation.

Two decades ago, exactly, I stood in a high school classroom looking at a map of the world, asking myself, “If I could work with any country in the world, which one would it be?” With great confidence I pointed to Yugoslavia, as a land between East and West, with a vast potential, so unfortunately hindered by decades of communism and regional war. It was not until 2012, while doing research into my own family’s history, that I found a goosebump-inducing link. Descending from a mutual Great-Grandfather in the 1300’s, named Michael von Bancke, through the German House of Hesse and the royal houses of Europe, was a distant 23rd cousin: H.R.H. Crown Prince Alexander of Yugoslavia, the current Crown Prince of Serbia. Doing a little more research, I discovered the extraordinary story of Crown Prince Alexander and Crown Princess Katherine’s return to their homeland from exile, and their efforts to restore it after decades of dictatorship and regional war. Reaching out to the Crown Prince, I told him of my genealogical discovery, and that I would be pleased to support his efforts. It was many weeks later when I was surprised to open a monogramed Smythson envelope to find inside a thoughtful signed photograph and exquisite gold and blue lapel pin, bearing the Crown Prince’s cipher.

Today, fulfilling my pledge, I am happy to share with you the work of Their Royal Highnesses’ Toronto-based charity, Lifeline Canada. Providing medical equipment and support to hospitals in Serbia, Lifeline Canada also aides in education and human capacity building, and in their own words, supports social services “to reduce the reliance on orphanages and to support existent orphanages and programs to meet the needs and wellbeing of the babies, children and youth in institutional care… supporting initiatives that transition children from institutional care to small homes programs and successful foster care models that integrate orphaned children into family communities.” I invite you to visit Lifeline Canada online at, Lifeline-Canada.org, and find a way to join in supporting this most noble cause.

J D Banck Publisher THE CIRCLE

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