FINANCE
Celebrities who transformed the lives of others with their donations and charitable works
One of the reasons why celebrities are vital in the lives of many is the fact that they make selfless donations to make the lives of others better. Below are examples of some public figures whose donation events have transformed the lives of people.
1. Angelina Jolie
Out of compassion for the less privileged, Angelina started the Jolie-Pitt foundation alongside her ex-husband back in 2006. In 2012, she was granted special Convoy to the U.N High Commissioner for Refugees. This was due to the years of dedicated service she has given to the donation event and to the cause of the refugees’ rights.
2. Change the Rapper
The Chicagoan musician is among the list of the most influential people on the planet. He earns the top spot on “Celebs Gone Good” list in 2017 due to his charity works and donations. Also, Chance, who won the Grammy awards three times, was given the 2017 BET Humanitarian Award by Michelle Obama.
3. Beyonce
Beyonce is a force to reckon with in the world of pop; hence, eyes are always on her. However, she uses her donation events to fight for women as well as partake in charity. She co-founded the Survivor Foundation with Kelly Rowland where she made tons of donations. The also did several humanitarian works through her Beygood Foundation where she supported causes like toy giveaways for kids in need and also relief efforts all over the globe). She is known to donate now more than she did in the past.
4. Ellen DeGeneres
Many are aware of the fact that Ellen (the talk show superstar) often surprises her live studio audience with various donations. However, this act of generosity does not end with her fans. Her Oscar selfie generated about $3 million and she gave $1.5 million to The Humane Society and St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital.
Also, she is a die-hard supporter of animal rights. In 2016, former President Barack Obama gave her the “Presidential Medal of Freedom”.
5. Portia de Rossi
When it comes to charity and donations, De Rossi is doing quite well. The actress is presently in Rwanda to start the building of the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossy Gorilla fund. The aim of the donation event is to support endangered gorillas.
She helped to start the Ellen Fund which she used to support the Dian Fossey Gorilla Funds whose dream is to find a permanent home for the gorillas in Rwanda. According to De Rossi, the new campus will enable the gorillas and the prevailing community to thrive.
She said Dian Fossey was Ellen’s hero, and she loves the idea of working with Ellen towards accomplishing a common goal, which is the protection of man’s closest relatives- the mountain gorillas.
6. John Legend
John Legend was motivated after reading “The End of Poverty”, a book written by Earth Institute director Dr. Jeffery Sachs. Afterward, the musician and activist decided to travel to Ghana to make more research on the problem facing African countries.
Then, John created the Show Me Campaign whose aim is to provide unprivileged children access to quality education. The campaign which was partnered with Millennium Promise Alliance now donates to the needy villages in Africa. He also established FREE AMERICA which is a multi-year culture campaign that seeks to revolutionize the criminal justice system in America.
An example of the many donations done by John Legend includes paying off 5,000 school lunch debt for 99 schools in Seattle.
7. Emma Watson
Just in this year, Emma Watson had donated about $1.4 million to support the anti-sexual harassment campaign and also the UK Justice and Equality Fund. However, her history of activism and giving began a long time ago.
Emma, one of the members of the HeForShe campaign and an Ambassador of U.N Women Goodwill launched a fashion line with PeopleTree back in 2009. She also encouraged her fans to ignore her birthday and instead make donations to UNICEF’s charity fund as well as charities like the Small Steps Project.
8. Rihanna
Rihanna founded the Clara Lionel Foundation Global Scholarship Program as a way of supporting students from the Caribbean who wants to further their education in the United States. She received the 2017 Harvard University Humanitarian of the Year Award for her charity works and donations.
Rihanna also gave her support to the Global Partnership for Education and Global Citizen Project. Through this project, millions of young students all across the globe now get access to a good education.
9. Laverne Cox
Laverne gave her support to the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP). The aim of this movement is to prevent, respond to and stop all violent acts against and within the LGBTQ communities.
In 2015, she assisted “Broadway Bares” in raising $1.6 million for BCEFA (Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS). The program is one of America’s most prominent industry-based grant-making organizations and HIV/AIDS fundraising.