Look To The Stars News: Tom Brokaw

Tom Brokaw To Host Charity Event Tonight

Tue, 18 Nov 2008 11:30:00 -0000

Legendary journalist and current interim moderator of NBC’s Meet the Press Tom Brokaw will host the seventh annual Joan’s Legacy Uniting Against Lung Cancer Benefit Gala later tonight, November 18.

The Strolling Supper with Blues and News will kick off at 6:30 at the Frederick P. Rose Hall in New York, and will feature a performance by Grammy-winning blues great Delbert McClinton and the “greatest silent auction in the City“.

More than 500 business leaders and philanthropists from every industry will attend the evening, which will raise money to help Joan’s Legacy’s fight against lung cancer. The charity was named after Joan Scarangello McNeive, a gifted writer, life-long New Yorker and nonsmoker, who died at age 47 in 2001 after a valiant nine-month fight with lung cancer. Their aim is to find a cure for lung cancer by funding innovative research and increasing awareness of the world’s leading cancer killer, with a special focus on non-smoking-related lung cancer.

Items up for auction tonight include a guitar signed by Hannah Montana’s Miley Ray Cyrus and Billy Ray Cyrus, the chance to join Steve Carell for lunch and a tour of the set of The Office, the chance to have a character named after you in James Patterson’s next Alex Cross, Women’s Murder Club, or Maximum Ride novel, and many more exciting opportunities and items.

Tickets and info are available here.

Robin Hood Gets Merry For Charity!

Tue, 03 Jun 2008 11:32:00 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

The stars came out for the Robin Hood Foundation’s annual fundraising gala last week, in an evening that shone, sparkled, and made the charity millions of dollars.

About 4,000 people gathered at the event held at the Javits Center in New York, including rapper Jay-Z, Russell Simmons, Tom Brokaw, Miramax boss Harvey Weinstein, and American Idol winner David Cook. The proceeds from the event, which included an auction, will go to more than 240 poverty-fighting programs in the city, including Abraham House in the South Bronx, which offers social services to relatives of prison inmates; the Children’s Defense Fund, which seeks better access to health care for poor children, and Broadway Housing Communities, which provides shelter for the homeless or the mentally ill.

The auction was co-hosted by Conan O’Brien, and the evening also featured performances by Shakira, Sheryl Crow, and John Legend.

“Every single penny raised tonight goes to help people claw their way out of poverty and build better lives for themselves and their families,” said David Saltzman, Robin Hood’s executive director. “Despite what’s going on in the economy, people who are in a position to help others step up, and during tough times they step up even more.”

Conservation International Hosts 20th Anniversary Dinner

Wed, 20 Jun 2007 07:25:02 -0000

Written by Tim Saunders

Harrison Ford, Calista Flockhart, and Meredith Brokaw (the wife of Tom Brokaw) were just some of the celebrities and business leaders present at the Conservation International 20th Anniversary Chicago Fundraising Dinner on June 14th. Held at the Four Seasons Hotel, the event raised over $1 million for Conservation International projects.

The evening was opened by CI board member Paula Crown, who declared that the event was officially “carbon neutral”. Guests dined on a selection of locally-grown organic cuisine, and were treated to a pre-recorded video message from former vice-president, Al Gore. During his presentation, Mr Gore emphasized Conservation International’s work, and also spoke of the importance of conservation and leadership in reducing the effects of climate change.

The business sector was also represented at the dinner by Lee Scott, CEO of Wal-Mart, whose company is working with Conservation International to protect and restore the diverse ecosystems that sustain life on Earth. Key speaker of the evening was Walter Isaacson, CEO of the Aspen Institute, a non-profit organization dedicated to fostering leadership and open-minded dialogue.

Harrison Ford has been a board member of Conservation International for over 10 years, at one time serving as vice chairman, and is now on the executive committee. He has been actively involved in the organization’s design and growth, and has personally donated 389 acres of his private land in Wyoming to conservation efforts.

Busy Month For Charity Icon Jolie

Fri, 15 Jun 2007 20:10:26 -0000

Written by Steve Purcell

Angelina Jolie recently told an interviewer from Esquire magazine of her wish to be remembered more for her charity than her acting, and the first half of June is already bringing the fulfilment of that wish closer.

Describing the satisfaction her humanitarian path has brought her, she said, “I entered this business before I had focus and purpose in my life. I was very unhappy, very unhealthy, and when I sat down for an interview, I didn’t know why. I felt like I didn’t have anything to share.”

Jolie told Esquire, “I recently had a column published in a newspaper and at the end it didn’t say I was an actress. It said that I was a UN Goodwill Ambassador – that’s all. And I was really proud.”

Alongside that much-vaunted UNHCR ambassadorship, the actress was this month voted into the Council on Foreign Relations, a think tank which boasts members such as Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter, Diane Sawyer, Condoleezza Rice and Tom Brokaw.

“Angelina Jolie is accomplished in her field and has demonstrated serious interest in issues such as Darfur, international education and refugees,” said Lisa Shields, vice president of communications at CFR. “As such, her profile fits very well with other young professionals we’ve selected as the next generation of foreign policy leaders.”

Taking a further opportunity to do good, Jolie is donating the Bochic jewellery she wore to the Golden Globe Awards to a charity auction from which all proceeds will go to UNHCR programs in Chad for refugees from the Darfur region. The auction will run from June 19th to July 2nd at charityfolks.com.

And most recently, Jolie and partner Brad Pitt arranged Wednesday’s New York première of their new movie as a charity benefit event. “A Mighty Heart” recounts the story of murdered journalist Daniel Pearl, and its opening benefited the French charity Reporters Without Borders, which – appropriately – works to uphold the human rights of reporters.

Celebrities Fuel Robin Hood Charity Excess

Mon, 07 May 2007 20:19:47 -0000

Written by Steve Purcell

This year’s Robin Hood fundraiser saw top-tier investors driven by good-natured rivalry and celebrity encouragement to give a massive $71 million to charity.

Individual pledges of up to $10 million were made, totalling around $40 million, and guests participated enthusiastically in an auction of unique and decadent lots.

Winning bids included $400,000 to sing a song with Aerosmith (whose singer Steven Tyler performed for two hours of the evening), $1.3 million for a 10-person dinner with celebrity chef Mario Batali, and $2.2 million for an insider trip to the Beijing Olympics.

The annual event is expertly marketed to its guest list of hedge fund managers and private equity high-fliers. Presiding auctioneer Jamie Niven, of Sotheby’s, said, “They put these things together that in your lifetime you couldn’t do. It’s the secret for that audience. You can’t give them a week in Rome. They can do that.”

Tom Brokaw began the evening, and comedian Jon Stewart played host. Mingling with the super-rich was a liberal sprinkling of further celebrities including Michael Douglas, Ben Affleck, Jimmy Fallon, Zach Braff and Martha Stewart.

This year’s donations exceeded those of last year by 32 percent, and the Robin Hood event has given more than $900 million in cash and donated services since it began in 1990, when it raised $700,000.

Look To The Stars News: Tom Brokaw

Tom Brokaw To Host Charity Event Tonight

Related past articles

Robin Hood Gets Merry For Charity!

Related past articles

Conservation International Hosts 20th Anniversary Dinner

Related past articles

Busy Month For Charity Icon Jolie

Related past articles

Celebrities Fuel Robin Hood Charity Excess

Related past articles