Look To The Stars News: Grief Support

Texas Helps Children In Scotland

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 11:30:00 -0000

Scottish singer and founder of the band Texas, Sharleen Spiteri, stepped out for children with cancer in Edinburgh last week.

The 40-year-old singer, whose hits include I Don’t Need A Lover and Once In A Lifetime, visited the youngsters at a hospice in the Scottish capital as part of her support of CLIC Sargent, an organization that provides accommodation for the families of young children who get cancer, giving them and their families a long-term base close to the specialist treatment unit at the Sick Kids Hospital.

“As a mother, it means so much to me to be involved with CLIC Sargent, and I have seen for myself the fantastic work they do for children with cancer and their families in Scotland,” said the singer, who is also the patron of the charity. “I cannot imagine how devastating it must be to be told your child has cancer, and this charity is a real lifeline.”

Eric McCormack Sees A Cure For Cancer In Our Lifetime

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 08:07:11 -0000

Written by Elizabeth Willoughby

Actor Eric McCormack – best known for his lead role in Will And Grace – was in his home province of Ontario recently to promote Canada’s largest funder of cancer research, the Canadian Cancer Society, and its annual Relay For Life overnight walkathon in June that aims to raise $50 million for research to eradicate cancer.

The relay is a unique fundraising event, and last year more than 200,000 people all across Canada walked, ran and strolled around tracks illuminated by nearly half a million luminary candles for 12 hours from dusk till dawn. It raised $47 million to be used for research on all types of cancers, support programs for cancer victims and families, and advocating for public policies that prevent cancer.

Even though he lost his mother to bladder cancer after beating breast cancer decades ago, and despite that his father has been fighting prostate cancer on and off for years, McCormack is convinced that cancer, like Polio, can be a thing of the past.

“Everyone has a cancer story,” says McCormack. “It’s way too common and I think it almost feels like it’s always going to be here. We have to think of cancer as something we can eliminate in our lifetime.”

Cancer is the leading cause of premature death in Canada. In its many forms, it will kill over 70,000 Canadians this year.

“My mom was of that generation that didn’t talk about things openly,” said McCormack. “We have to be that generation that fights it together. This is personal; not just for me – for everybody.”

Melissa Gilbert Honored For Hospice Care

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 08:41:59 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

It is a case of give and take for actress Melissa Gilbert this week, as she follows receiving a humanitarian award with an auction to raise money for children with serious illnesses.

The 43-year-old received the Humanitarian Leadership Award at the 2008 National Hospice Foundation Gala last Friday in Washington, DC. The evening, which featured a silent auction, dinner and party, celebrated some of the people who have lent their support to hospice and palliative care over the last year. Gilbert, who is the board president of the Children’s Hospice & Palliative Care Coalition and the spokesperson of the Partnering for Children campaign, was awarded the accolade in recognition for her work on behalf of children facing life-limiting conditions.

To follow up on the award, Gilbert is auctioning the opportunity to accompany her to a Dodgers vs. Diamondbacks game in Los Angeles on April 24, including the use of a private luxury suite at Dodger Stadium. The package also includes VIP parking for up to 9 cars, food and drinks, personalized photos of Melissa Gilbert, commemorative silver bracelets, and Dodgers memorabilia… a total value of over $6,500!

100% of the proceeds will go to the Children’s Hospice & Palliative Care Coalition, an organization that aims to ensure that children are treated with respect, dignity, and love within the medical system.

But you had better be quick – the auction ends later today, April 16, and can be accessed via eBay.

It's A Long Way Down For Charity

Thu, 15 Nov 2007 11:09:46 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

What was quite possibly the party of the year was held in London on November 8, in celebration of the adventure of a lifetime.

The Long Way Down charity dinner and auction was held to mark the successful completion of Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman’s 15,000 mile motorcycle ride from the most northern point in Scotland to the most southern point of South Africa, an adventure that is now the subject of a television series being shown on BBC2 on Sunday nights, and an action-packed book. A host of celebrities, including Elle Macpherson, James Nesbitt, and Scottish singer Sharleen Spiteri dusted off their best clothes for the event, which included performances by The Magic Numbers and Beth Orton.

The evening raised over $621,000 for the Long Way Down team’s charity partners, including Riders For Health, an organization that has worked for over 15 years to develop delivery systems for healthcare in Africa, as well as CHAS, a Scottish charity committed to providing children’s hospice services, and UNICEF.

“I’ve been involved with CHAS for many years,” said McGregor during the auction event. “It’s the most extraordinary place. 20% of the money raised tonight will go to CHAS, to help the children. They will be very grateful, as will I.”

The top selling item of the evening was a replica of the BMW R1200 motorcycle the pair rode during their journey. The bike, which was painted half in McGregor’s color scheme and half in Boorman’s, sold for an unbelievable $103,000. This was followed by one of the Nissan Nivara support vehicles that completed the trip, which was snapped up for $87,000. Other items included an African holiday for four people which reached $27,000, and a one-of-a-kind Gary Hutchins Edbanger guitar, sold for $18,000. In fact, the guitar proved to be so popular that the company that produced it agreed to make two more, both of which reached the same price.

Several celebrities also donated their own items to the auction, including Jay Kay from British pop group Jamiroquai, whose mountain bike fetched $12,000, slightly more than his personal hovercraft, which reached $10,000. Actor Simon Pegg sold the Nike shoes he wore in his latest movie, “Run Fat Boy Run”, for $3000.

The Long Way Down team is committed to raising as much money as possible for children affected by HIV, poverty, and conflict in Africa, and visited several sites in Libya, Ethiopia, Sudan, and Rwanda where UNICEF works during the adventure. Both McGregor and Boorman hope that the auction will go a long way in achieving that goal.

“We have started a partnership with UNICEF that will continue for a long long time,” said McGregor, who paid $20,000 for six fashion dresses for his wife during the auction. “The people that we met who work for UNICEF, and the children they help, really touched us to our core. I have often thought that where I would say ‘I don’t know what we can do’, UNICEF says ‘Here’s what we can do’.”

More information on the epic journey can be found at www.longwaydown.com.

Beckham To Play Charity Soccer Match

Thu, 01 Nov 2007 10:41:39 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

Soccer star David Beckham is to play in a charity match to benefit those affected by the devastating wildfires currently causing havoc in Southern California.

November 4 will see Beckham’s Los Angeles Galaxy team, which he joined in July, take on a celebrity team – known as Hollywood United – with profits going to the American Red Cross and The Salvation Army.

“Everyone’s expected to play, including David,” said Galaxy General Manager, Alexi Lalas. “This is a great opportunity for our organization to do something positive for our area, our home, and for our friends and neighbors who have been impacted by these incredibly devastating wildfires.”

The fires have now been burning out of control on the border between LA and Mexico for two weeks, and over 500,000 people have been forced to leave their homes. During this time, 800 square miles and over 2000 buildings and houses have been destroyed, with 12 people confirmed dead.

“Our players are residents of Southern California,” said Lalas. “This is a great way for us to bring some attention and, most importantly, raise some money.”

The match will take place at Galaxy’s home ground, the Home Depot Center in Carson, and a large turnout is expected. A host of celebrities have stepped forward for the Hollywood United team, including Without A Trace star Anthony LaPaglia, The Transporter’s Jason Statham, former Sex Pistols guitarist Steve Jones, Def Leppard’s Vivian Campbell, and former footballer turned actor, Vinnie Jones.

“We’ve all witnessed the destruction these wildfires have caused throughout Southern California,” said Lalas. “Through soccer, we have the ability to help those who have been impacted by this disaster. We encourage all Galaxy fans and soccer fans everywhere to come out and support this worthy cause.”

The footballers are not the only ones doing their bit for the cause. Singer Gwen Stefani has donated the profits from her concert in San Diego on October 30 to victims of the wildfires.

“When I heard about the devastation of the fires, I felt I should cancel my show out of respect,” said the native of Orange County, California. “But then it occurred to me there might be a more useful solution.”

Stefani announced that the proceeds of the show will go to the San Diego Foundation’s After-The-Fires Fund 2007, which has been set up to provide grants to emergency relief providers and non-profit service organizations involved in the fires

Johnny's Angels Party For Charity

Wed, 24 Oct 2007 14:18:34 -0000

Written by Myrlia Purcell

Celebrity father of two Johnny Depp is so moved by parenthood that he now takes time to care about all children.

The actor says becoming a parent has given him a “real foundation, a real strong place to stand in life, in work, in everything.”

At his induction into the Hollywood Walk of Fame he wore a bracelet in memory of Dustin, a child from the Children’s Hospice Coalition, and in 2006, he received the Courage to Care award in recognition of his contributions to the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

“Johnny Depp embodies the very spirit of the `Courage to Care’ Award because he puts smiles on the faces of thousands of children through his great work on film, and his longtime private advocacy of children and children’s charities is nothing short of inspirational,” says Ms. Fernandez-Farrand, a member of the Childrens Hospital Los Angeles Board of Trustees.

His fans certainly find him inspirational, and on November 10th, his philanthropic fan club, Johnny’s Angels, are holding a fundraising party for the Children’s Hospice Coalition in New York. For more information, go to Johnny’s Angels on MySpace.

Jerry Lewis Tops Charity Survey

Fri, 31 Aug 2007 20:48:18 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

A survey has named comedy actor Jerry Lewis as the most effective celebrity for charity causes, with 43% of those surveyed saying he is the best at raising funds and driving change for the issues he supports.

The survey, carried out by the Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, put the 81 year old veteran of movies including “The Nutty Professor” at the top of a list of ten philanthropic celebrities, such as Oprah Winfrey, Michael J. Fox, Jimmy Carter, Bill Gates, Angelina Jolie, Bono, Lance Armstrong, Katie Couric, and Rosie O’Donnell. Jerry Lewis helped establish the Muscular Dystrophy Association in 1952, and has organized and hosted a Labor Day Telethon every year since 1966. His fundraising efforts have raised over $2 billion for neuromuscular care and research, with last year’s telethon raising $61 million alone. He has also been involved with fundraising for The Salvation Army and the American Red Cross. He is the only media celebrity to have been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

“I’m always honored and humbled by the response of the American people to my efforts on behalf of the Muscular Dystrophy Association,” said Lewis, who will host the 42nd Labor Day Telethon on September 2 and 3. “Their generosity has allowed us to provide important services and conduct vital research for 57 years.”

The survey also investigated the issues that Americans find most important. The results showed that causes to help children and animals are the most popular, followed by education and literacy, services for the elderly, religion, health and medicine, the environment, and aid for disabled people.

Respondents of the survey aged between 18 and 42 were more interested in international causes, and were more likely to be influenced by celebrities such as Oprah and Bono, who work with developing countries to ease poverty. Respondents over the age of 43 were influenced more by older celebrities, such as Bill Gates, who supports health and education issues, and Jimmy Carter, who works with Habitat For Humanity. 42% of those surveyed said they want to donate more time to charity, but cannot find the opportunity.

Hilary Duff Dishes It Out at Homeless Shelter

Mon, 06 Aug 2007 17:03:34 -0000

Written by Elizabeth Willoughby

Singer Hilary Duff served up chicken and stew for hundreds of homeless and working poor men last week at Hope Mission’s Herb Jamieson Center, a shelter in downtown Edmonton, Alberta. She stopped by the Center as part of her campaign to raise awareness about poverty and hunger.

“It’s nice when someone who makes a lot of money will look you in the eye and treat you like a real person,” Hope Mission spokeswoman Janelle Aker said, adding that Duff’s efforts could also help raise awareness with a younger demographic.

The pop star was in town as part of the Canadian leg of her North American Dignity tour, which kicked off last weekend. Duff is once again asking concert-goers to bring along non-perishable food donations to be collected at concert gates by The Salvation Army and distributed by food charity Harvest. Harvest chapters “collect surplus food from restaurants, grocery stores, and other food producers and immediately deliver it to missions, shelters, soup kitchens and food banks.” During her previous two Canadian tours, Duff raised over 125,000 pounds for Alberta Harvest. Harvest founder Stan Curtis says each concert can bring in as many as 3,000 cans of food, enough for 6,000 meals.  

Last November Duff bought 200,000 meals through USA Harvest for Hurricane Katrina refugees still in shelters over a year after the disaster. Curtis says, “Hilary has set an extraordinary example with her generous contributions to the Gulf Coast victims of (the) tragic hurricanes. With her current contribution, Hilary will have donated over 2.7 million meals to the victims who still need these generous donations.”

Even so, Duff says, “A big misconception of charity work and celebrities is that it takes a lot of money. It doesn’t take a lot of money. Your time is the best thing you can give.” She feels that with compassion, homelessness and hunger are simple to solve.

Duff plans to meet with fans before her August 25 concert in Louisville, Kentucky, and is asking her fans to help her raise 1,000 cans of food at the event.

Scarlett Johansson, Green Day and Goo Goo Dolls are also contributors to USA Harvest.

Formula 1 Charity Auction Tops $10 Million

Wed, 18 Jul 2007 12:47:06 -0000

Written by Elizabeth Willoughby

The British Grand Prix weekend began earlier this month with performances at London’s Royal Albert Hall by Lemar and Beverley Knight, Mica Paris, Run DMC and Ronan Keating, followed by an auction to raise money for CLIC Sargent, the UK’s leading children’s cancer charity. Over $10 million was raised, with Formula One memorabilia and a Pablo Picasso print among the top earners at the auction.

Alex Waters, 20-year-old British Formula 3 racing driver, raised over $350,000 when he auctioned 22 signed caricatures of leading F1 racers, drawn by their team mates. F1 Racing Magazine editor Matt Bishop says, “These drawings are a totally unique, highly collectible lot, and to our knowledge, this is the first time that a full complement of World Championship F1 drivers have penned sketches of each other and made the originals available as a complete set for charity.”

Mr Waters has pledged to donate half of all sponsorship money he raises to the children’s cancer charity that supported him and his family while he was being treated for cancer. Every day 10 children and young people are diagnosed with cancer or leukaemia in the UK.

Former F1 team boss Eddie Jordan thanked bidders for their generosity. “We promised that a centre would be opened in London to support those families touched by cancer and we are absolutely thrilled that our dream can now become a reality.”

Celebrity Art Auction For WAVE

Tue, 07 Mar 2006 11:52:17 -0000

Written by Myrlia Purcell

Artists and celebrities, such as Jude Law and Robbie Williams, have joined James Nesbitt to raise money for WAVE Trauma Centre.

Nesbitt is a leading organizer of WAVE’s celebrity art auction, in which professional and amateur artists are given a canvas and the opportunity to create a masterpiece.

John Hurt spent two weeks on a self-portrait that has been valued at £20,000 by the art curator at London’s Groucho Club.

There will be a public exhibition of up 300 pieces of the art at Belfast’s City Hall from the 24th-28th of April. The open auction will take place on April 28th at 7:30pm, and the event finishes with a gala ball on April 29th.

WAVE is a charity that supports people who are bereaved or traumatized by violence in Northern Ireland. To view the art online, or for more information on the fundraising event, visit the Art WAVE website.

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