Look To The Stars News: Kelly Rowland

Beyoncé Donates To Hurricane Ike Victims

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 15:31:00 -0000

Former Destiny’s Child singer Beyoncé Knowles has made a huge personal donation to victims of Hurricane Ike.

The 27-year-old has pledged $100,000 to the Gulf Coast Ike Relief Fund, which was established at the request of Houston Mayor Bill White to help fill unmet human needs for victims of Hurricane Ike in the Greater Houston area.

The singer is also currently organizing a benefit concert through her Survivor Foundation to help raise money for those who have lost homes, property and jobs in Galveston, Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Harris and Montgomery counties.

Knowles specifically established her Foundation to assist people displaced or affected by disasters. The family-run family charity – which is also supported by Kelly Rowland – helps people in need, providing assistance to children and to those suffering from AIDS and homelessness.

Since it was established, the Survivor Foundation has raised over $2.5 million dollars in the Houston area alone.

Beyoncé Honored For Charity Work

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 14:30:00 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

Beyoncé Knowles was honored at a special gala on Saturday night for her charity work.

The Diamond Ball raised money for the Miami Children’s Hospital Foundation, an organization whose mission is to create awareness and generate funds for Miami Children’s Hospital, and featured performances by Smokey Robinson, Gloria Gaynor, and seven-year-old pianist Ethan Bortnick, who was playing to show his appreciation for the hospital for treating his younger brother’s heart troubles.

Tables for the concert cost up to $11,000, and profits went directly to the only licensed specialty hospital in South Florida exclusively for children.

The list of charities Knowles supports is both long and varied, but perhaps the greatest contribution she has made is the Survivor Foundation, an organization she founded with fellow Destiny’s Child Kelly Rowland to help victims of Hurricane Katrina. The foundation’s accomplishments are many, including the Music World Cares Christmas Carnival that enabled over 300 low-income households to enjoy a fun-filled day of food, entertainment, a visit from Santa Claus and free toys from the toy giveaway. The singer also held a series of food drives before her concerts in 2006 to collect the food that was so desperately needed by victims.

Alicia Keys Holds Charity Ball In London

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 15:30:00 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

Singer Alicia Keys hosted a gala in London last week to raise cash for orphans suffering from HIV/AIDS in Africa, and attracted some of the biggest names in showbiz.

The lavish ball – held last Thursday – raised money for Keep A Child Alive, the charity Keys co-founded to provide life-saving anti-retroviral treatment to children and their families with HIV/AIDS in Africa. Guests such as Kelly Rowland, Mischa Barton, Russell Brand, and Jennifer Hudson each paid over $2,000 to be part of the ball.

“Any time you’re helping someone is very important and, of course, when children are involved,” said Hudson. “I feel like your celebrity is not about the fortune or the fame. But if you can’t help anyone then it’s in vain, it’s pointless.”

27-year-old Alicia Keys, who stunned the audience by performing a duet of the Eurythmics’ Sweet Dreams and REM’s Everybody Hurts with Annie Lennox at the gala, helped found Keep A Child Alive after visiting South Africa in 2003 and witnessing the effects of the AIDS pandemic firsthand. She told BBC Newsbeat that people need to remember that AIDS is a global problem.

“It scares me… it really does. Thinking of myself, thinking of younger generations, my brother’s generation. We have a lot to really be careful about and it’s such a major thing that we have to be cautious. But we can totally avoid it by practicing safe sex and, if you can, just abstinence. And definitely being aware of what’s going on so that you know that you want to protect yourself every time, all the time.”

The ball raised almost $700,000 for the charity.

Kelly Rowland Tested For HIV To Raise Awareness

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:30:00 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

R&B singer Kelly Rowland has undergone an HIV test in Africa to raise awareness of the disease.

The 27-year-old Destiny’s Child singer took the test while in Nairobi on Thursday to help reduce the stigma of the disease in the country, where people fear discrimination if they are tested.

“Ignorance is not bliss when it comes to HIV infection, and it is important for everyone to know their HIV status,” she said. “The quicker you know your status, the sooner you can receive treatment if you’re HIV+, and reduce the risk of inadvertently infecting future partners.”

Rowland is in Africa as the first ever Ambassador for MTV’s Staying Alive Foundation, and hopes to help the people of Kenya get the disease under control. HIV/AIDS is at pandemic levels through much of Africa, with UNAIDS – the United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS – estimating that more than 22 million adults and children are living with the disease on the continent.

The singer also took the time to visit the 2008 recipients of the Staying Alive Foundation’s grants, who have been chosen for their efforts to encourage, educate and empower their peers in the fight against HIV and AIDS. Each grantee receives a cash grant to enable them to realize a project associated with raising the awareness of the disease. The Kenyan recipients of the 2008 Staying Alive Foundation Awards are: The Kisumu Self Help Disabled Group; REPACTED (Rapid Effective Participatory Action in Community Theatre Education and Development); and The Positive Youth Initiative.

“All the 2008 Staying Alive grantees should be proud of the vital function they fulfill in their communities by helping to raise the awareness about HIV/AIDS,” said Rowland. “By stressing the importance of prevention, raising awareness about the basic issues surrounding HIV and AIDS and reducing stigma associated with infection, they are taking direct action to help stop the spread of the disease.”

The Magnitude of Fortitude - When Parkinson’s Patients Feel Their Lives Are Crumbling, The HollyRod Foundation Provides Stability

Tue, 14 Nov 2006 22:08:00 -0000

Written by Jill Marie Elliott

It is a tremor that will send shockwaves through nearly 60,000 families in the U.S. this year. However, it will not be registering on the Richter scale; the shift in their world will be caused by the diagnosis of Parkinson’s Disease. They will join the estimated 1.5 million afflicted Americans, along with their loved ones, who feel the reverberations of a disorder that leaves physical destruction, emotional devastation and financial ruin in its wake. Out of this rubble, a resolve emerges to research and fund a cure amongst the chaos.

For many, the first rumblings of Parkinson’s Disease are noticed in slurred speech, muscle stiffness, a shuffling gait; for actress Holly Robinson-Peete, it was noticing her dad walking with a limp while dropping her off at college in 1982. Upon returning home for Christmas of that year, Holly was told of his Bell’s Palsy, a condition that causes the facial muscles to weaken or become paralyzed. At the age of 46, this was the onset of his diagnosis with Parkinson’s Disease.

His name may not sound familiar, however many know Matt Robinson as the man who swept our cares away. His role playing the original Gordon on Sesame Street endeared us to this gentleman who would go on to write and produce for some of televisions best-loved comedies, including Sanford & Son, Eight is Enough, and The Cosby Show.

“When my father got sick, our whole world fell apart,” expressed Holly in a 2002 iParenting.com interview.

Even though Matthew had a successful career in the entertainment business, there was a substantial financial strain created by the medical needs of the disease. Fortunately Holly and her husband, former NFL quarterback Rodney Peete and the rest of Matthew’s supportive family alleviated that stress. Moved by so many patients they encountered who did go without the physical, emotional and financial support, the Beverly Hills humanitarian husband and wife team were determined to create an organization that dealt straight-on with these issues. The HollyRod Foundation for Help and Hope was founded in 1997 in honor of Matthew T. Robinson, Sr.

The HollyRod Foundation joined forces in 2002 with the Center for Parkinson’s Research and Movement Disorders at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, in establishing The HollyRod Compassionate Care Program. This partnership enables HollyRod to provide individual patients with financial and medical assistance, along with other services and care as needed.

HollyRod is a lightning rod for charitable celebrities. The foundation presents two annual phenomenal fundraisers to raise money and awareness throughout the year. The star-studded DesignCure and Gridiron Glamour Celebrity Fashion Show & Brunch feature haute ensembles and cool entertainment!

Decked out in dynamic fashion designs from ESCADA, models took to the catwalk, delighting DesignCure 2006 invited guests such as Chris Rock, Star Jones Reynolds, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Angie Harmon and Samuel L. Jackson. The auction this year included a set of three guitars autographed by members of U2, The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin! Boxing legend and three-time host of DesignCure Sugar Ray Leonard had the distinction of joining former honoree, famed fighter Muhammad Ali, when he was presented with the HollyRod Foundation Humanitarian Award for his knockout charitable efforts. The summer evening ended on a high-note with a musical performance by Grammy winner Jill Scott. In its eight years of existence, DesignCure has raised over one million dollars.

The Gridiron Glamour fundraiser fuses fashion & football together in an event held during Super Bowl week. In the past, the event has showcased the top fashion designs from Saks Fifth Avenue couture collection. The hottest trends & threads were worn by a team that included supermodel and hostess Niki Taylor, singing sensations Patti LaBelle, Kelly Rowland and Marc Anthony, sport stars Rick Fox, Serena Williams and Jason Sehorn and Hollywood personalities Daisy Fuentes, Nancy O’Dell & Carmen Electra!

The 2007 Gridiron Glamour Celebrity Fashion Show & Brunch will be held in Miami, Florida on February 3rd. In addition to money raised for the HollyRod Foundation, the fundraiser bestows a non-profit organization in each Super Bowl city to serve as local beneficiary of the event. The 2007 recipient is The Honey Shine Foundation, a non-profit mentoring program providing positive experiences that nurture the mind, body and soul of girls 6 to 18 years old in at-risk situations.

Mr. Robinson passed away from Parkinson’s Disease in August 2002, twenty years after being diagnosed. His spirit lives on in HollyRod’s ever-strengthening commitment to fostering help & hope to Parkinson’s patients, and their families and caregivers.

That’s one wave of compassion we can all roll with.

Look To The Stars News: Kelly Rowland

Beyoncé Donates To Hurricane Ike Victims

Related past articles

Beyoncé Honored For Charity Work

Related past articles

Alicia Keys Holds Charity Ball In London

Related past articles

Kelly Rowland Tested For HIV To Raise Awareness

Related past articles

The Magnitude of Fortitude - When Parkinson’s Patients Feel Their Lives Are Crumbling, The HollyRod Foundation Provides Stability

Related past articles