How Meghan Markle's Encouraging Letter to Shy Classmate 20 Years Ago Inspired Her

Meghan Markle's generous nature stretches all the way back to her high school days, Inside Edition has learned.

Michelle Fanara, a former classmate of the Duchess of Sussex has shared a handwritten note she received from Markle 20 years ago. She tucked the note away inside her yearbook from Immaculate Heart High School in Hollywood, California.

It was there that Fanara attended classes with the future member of the royal family.

"To have someone reach out and say, 'Hey, if you ever need someone,' that is pretty special," said Fanara.

At the all-girls school, Fanara was hit hard in her senior year by the death of her beloved great aunt. She was shy and locked inside her own heart.

"I wanted to retreat into my own shell and Meghan was like, 'No you can't do that. You're here. You're here for a reason.' She kept pulling me out of my shell."

It wasn't until she watched the royal wedding between Prince Harry and Markle that Fanara remembered the missive she'd kept over the years.

She thought, "Oh, wait. I kept a letter from Meghan. So I went looking (and), 'Oh yeah, I still have it.'"

Fanara shared the letter exclusively with Inside Edition.

And inside her yearbook, she found another signed message from Markle. "I can already tell you're a great person!" Markle wrote. I can't wait to see you next year. Love, Meghan."

Fanara says her former classmate was lovely inside and out. "She was genuinely a nice person. I don't think there was a mean bone in her body."

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