Prince William Serves Soup, Too

Last week, Michelle Obama worked at a DC soup kitchen. This week, the world is seeing just-released pictures of Britain's Prince William preparing food for guests of a homeless shelter. Coincidence? Or are these world leaders using these carefully orchestrated PR opportunities to send us a message?

Let's just call it the ultimate call to action.

Last week, Michelle Obama surprised Miriam's Kitchen, a soup kitchen in DC, serving up a White House-caliber meal (although, as I ranted here, the debacle surrounding the AP photo seemed to overshadow this call to action).

This week, pictures were released for the first time from Prince William's 2006 visit to Centrepointe, a UK homeless shelter. Prince William spent two days working in the charity supported by his late mother, Princess Diana. According to M&C:

Roger Defore, the centre's then-manager told Hello magazine: "He did everything a good volunteer would do. Waking the residents up, setting up breakfast, making sure they knew what they were doing that day.

"Then he helped with the tidying up, making beds, phoning hostels and checking for vacancies, chasing up people's housing benefit.

"He was really good - you would have thought he was a member of staff, really laid back, with a lovely manner with young people.

"It's surprising how quickly you forget who he is; he's just Will. He's got a great sense of humour - a bit warped. Once he teased an ex-CEO saying, "Go away, you're too old - we don't work with people your age!' "

It's refreshing to see such a high profile figure going beyond the photo op, becoming intimately acquainted with the daily grind of a homeless shelter.

But here's the big question: Prince William's shelter visit happened in 2006. Why release the pictures now?

I have an inkling it has to do with our global economic meltdown and the resulting rise of people seeking assistance at homeless shelters and soup kitchens. Perhaps they're trying to convey that no matter how well-known or powerful you may (or may not) be, when times get rough we should should roll up our sleeves and serve our neighbors... literally. Maybe they're trying to spread a message: when one person is hungry, sleeping on the streets, or without the basic necessities of life, we all have a responsibility to chip in to see that these needs are met.

So what are you waiting for? Go out and create your own photo op. So what if you don't have star power; use your social networks and good example to spread a message we should all get behind.

[Find out how how to create your own photo op here.]