Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Present Kevin Costner With Award at Fundraiser for First Responders

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle made a surprise appearance at a star-studded charity fundraiser to support local California first responders.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, 39 and 42 respectively, stepped out at the Fall One805LIVE! Festival on Friday, September 22, which was held at Kevin Costner’s beachfront estate. 

“Today’s the big day!” a post on the organization’s Instagram Story read on Friday. “It’s going to be an exciting night with some surprise appearances you don’t want to miss!”

The annual festival is the flagship event for the One805 nonprofit, which supports all three primary first responder agencies in Santa Barbara, California. To help raise funds and celebrate the heroes, an annual music festival is put on at Costner’s home. 

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Charitable Work Throughout the Years

Harry and Meghan, who moved to the California county in 2020 after they took a step back from their duties as senior working royals, even presented the 68-year-old Yellowstone actor with a special honor. Meghan donned a gray coatdress with her hair tied back in a sleek bun. Harry, for his part, opted for an all-black suit.

According to footage shared via One805’s Instagram Story, Meghan picked up a gray-and-red trophy and handed it to her husband. Harry then gave the honor directly to Costner and shook his hand.

“Good afternoon everyone. Now, I get asked a lot by my friends who have no manners, ‘Kev, what’s this place cost? What’s it worth?’ And I can just simply tell you on a day, like today, it’s worth every penny,” Costner gushed to the crowd. “[I’m glad you all are] here to celebrate people … [who are] the ones who are the first to rush in. And it's a place that I’ve had a lot of good luck in my life and I’ve tried to not throw up a wall around it, so thank you for coming.”

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle: A Timeline of Their Relationship

The benefit, which featured a headlining performance from Adam Levine and his Maroon 5 band, took place at the home that Costner used to share with ex-wife Christine Baumgartner. (Baumgartner, 49, filed for divorce in May before they settled the proceedings earlier this month. She was ordered to move off the premises in July.)

Harry and Meghan’s surprise attendance at the One805LIVE! Festival comes shortly after they returned home from the Invictus Games in Düsseldorf, Germany.

“As you’ve seen and experienced, this week is so much more than a sporting event. It is a platform for positive change,” Harry, who shares two children with Meghan, gushed during the September 16 closing ceremony as his wife watched dutifully from the crowd.“The ripple of respect has been felt far and wide and we hope you too are feeling it deeply. We may have provided the platform, but you provided the magic. And don’t you ever forget that.”