Look To The Stars News: Children's Defense Fund

Stars Help Young People Beat The Odds

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 11:30:00 +0000

The Children’s Defense Fund-California hosted its 21st Annual Beat the Odds Awards on December 1, honoring John Jimenez, Nancy Kannampuzha, Britany Lewis, Caylin Moore and Jeanette Wright, five incredible Los Angeles area high school students who “beat the odds.”

Children’s Defense Fund President Marian Wright Edelman and Hollywood’s supporters celebrated the high school “stars” for overcoming tremendous personal obstacles in order to achieve academic excellence. Awards were presented to the students by Zoe Saldana, Zachary Quinto, Elisabeth Shue, Jurnee Smollett and Rodney Peete.

J.J. Abrams And Friends Help Beat The Odds At Charity Event

Mon, 06 Dec 2010 15:00:00 +0000

The Children’s Defense Fund California hosted its 20th Annual Beat the Odds Awards on Thursday, December 2, honoring five incredible Los Angeles area high school students who “beat the odds” – Jonathan Calderon, presented by J.J. Abrams, Hsiao-Wei Monica Banks, presented by Elisabeth Shue, Wilson Khauv, presented by Josh Holloway, Erica Limón, presented by Sofia Vergara and Giovanni Soto, presented by Zoe Saldana.

Children’s Defense Fund President Marian Wright Edelman – along with Hollywood supporters and co-chairs Katie McGrath & J.J. Abrams, Ruth-Ann Huvane & Kevin Huvane, Carol & Frank Biondi, Jane Kaczmarek, Stacey & Charles King and Laura & Casey Wasserman – celebrated these high school “stars” for overcoming tremendous personal obstacles in order to achieve academic excellence. Other stars in attendance included Carol Leifer, Conan O’Brien and Jeff Probst.

Generous Stars Join Dora The Explorer For Charity

Thu, 12 Aug 2010 15:30:00 +0000

Children’s favorite Dora The Explorer has been joined by some of the entertainment world’s most generous stars in a new celebrity charity auction.

Twelve custom-made backpacks designed by Jessica Alba, Sheryl Crow, LeBron James, Heidi Klum, Faith Hill, Drew Brees, Eva Longoria, Salma Hayek, Shakira, Slash and Matthew McConaughey are currently going under the hammer to celebrate the cartoon’s 10th anniversary. All proceeds from the Beyond The Backpack auction will go to the Children’s Defense Fund, an organization whose mission is to ensure the well-being of children everywhere.

The Beyond The Backpack auction campaign kicked off on Tuesday with a special event at Macy’s Herald Square in New York City, which was attend by LeBron James, Uma Thurman, Kelly Rutherford and Dora herself.

Beam Up Star Trek Items At Charity Auction

Wed, 28 Apr 2010 13:00:00 +0000

Julien’s Auctions are set to auction off personal effects and memorabilia belonging to the late-great creator of Star Trek, Gene Roddenberry, with all the proceeds going to charity.

The one-of-a-kind auction takes place at Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino in Las Vegas on Sunday, June 27th, 2010, and the Roddenberry Estate will donate all proceeds to The Roddenberry Foundation which makes grants to support the four pillars of the Roddenberry Philanthropic Philosophy – Children, Education, Inspiration, and Environment.

“My father would be proud that his memorabilia will not only be enjoyed and cherished by Star Trek fans, but that the proceeds will benefit society on a larger scale,” said Gene’s son, Rod Roddenberry.

Slash Teams With Dora The Explorer For Charity

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 13:30:00 +0000

Guitar legend Slash is teaming up with children’s cartoon character Dora the Explorer in this year’s most unlikely yet utterly awesome charity collaboration.

The guitarist is the first of a list of celebrities to be announced in a new initiative between Nickelodeon and the Children’s Defense Fund which will see stars design children’s backpacks for auction. Also rumored to be involved are Shakira and Salma Hayek.

According to the Fund, its mission “is to Leave No Child Behind and to ensure every child a Healthy Start, a Head Start, a Fair Start, a Safe Start, and a Moral Start in life and successful passage to adulthood with the help of caring families and communities.”

Stars Beat The Odds For Children

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 11:30:00 +0000

The Children’s Defense Fund hosted a star-studded charity gala last week.

The 19th annual Beat The Odds Awards honored young people who have overcome adversity to achieve academic excellence. Spotted attending the event at the Beverly Hills Hotel on December 3 were Jennifer Garner, Conan O’Brien, Jane Kaczmarek, Jennie Garth and many more.

The Children’s Defense Fund has worked for 35 years to provide a strong, effective voice for all the children of America who cannot vote, lobby, or speak for themselves. CDF educates the nation about the needs of children and encourages preventive investment before they get sick or into trouble, drop out of school, or suffer family breakdown.

Michael Jackson's This Is It Film To Be Released

Wed, 22 Jul 2009 13:00:00 +0000

It has been reported that a film is to be released of the final footage from Michael Jackson’s rehearsals for his This Is It concerts, with some of the proceeds to go to charity.

Sony Pictures is in final negotiations to acquire the film – at a price of $60 million – with 90% of the profits to go to the Jackson Estate, which will include a charity to be set up in the King of Pop’s name.

Jackson was a huge supporter of charities in his lifetime, and his family hopes to keep his memory alive with the new charity. The singer often visited underprivileged children and children affected by disasters and in hospitals, and worked with organizations such as the Jane Goodall Institute, the TJ Martell Foundation, the United Negro College Fund, the Michael Jackson Burn Center for Children, the Prince’s Trust, the Great Ormond Street Hospital, Childhelp USA, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs of America, Children’s Defense Fund, Elizabeth Taylor’s AIDS Foundation and many more.

Michael Jackson's Charity Legacy

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 15:30:00 +0000

Michael Jackson, who passed away last week, featured significantly on the pages of Look To The Stars. He was a passionate supporter of charity, and was honored by many different organizations for the work that he did and the compassion that he showed.

As well as writing We Are The World with Lionel Richie and helping to organize the United We Stand: What More Can I Give benefit concert in the wake of September 11, Jackson also donated the proceeds from a song to victims of Hurricane Katrina, often donated items to charity auctions, and was to donate some of the proceeds from his upcoming shows in London to charity. He set up a burns unit for children and also established the Heal The World Foundation, whose work has included airlifting 6 tons of supplies to Sarajevo, instituting drug and alcohol abuse education and donating millions of dollars to less fortunate children.

But this is only the tip of the iceberg. A comprehensive timeline of the late singer’s charitable work has been published by Jackson Action. The list includes his work with underprivileged children and children affected by disasters, visits to hospitals, and work with organizations such as the Jane Goodall Institute, the TJ Martell Foundation, the United Negro College Fund, the Michael Jackson Burn Center for Children, the Prince’s Trust, the Great Ormond Street Hospital, Childhelp USA, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Boys’ and Girls’ Clubs of America, Children’s Defense Fund, Elizabeth Taylor’s AIDS Foundation and many more. It also details Jackson’s efforts to airlift 60,000 doses of children’s vaccines to Tblisi, Georgia, and his donations to hundreds of charities. To view the timeline, click here.

American Idol Gives Back $67 Million

Thu, 13 Nov 2008 15:30:00 +0000

David Beckham, Bono, Annie Lennox and Carrie Underwood have all accepted cheques from April’s Idol Gives Back event on behalf of the charities they support.

The show raised over US$67 million for charities such as the Global Fund, Malaria No More, the Children’s Health Fund, Save the Children, and the Children’s Defense Fund.

“I saw first hand with my visit to Sierra Leone with UNICEF last year how devastating malaria can be to a country,” said Beckham, who was presented with US$12 million by Idol winner David Cook on behalf of Malaria No More. “This money will help buy millions of bed nets and also protect many people, particularly the young children who are most vulnerable.”

Affleck Tops Charity Stars in Denver

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 13:30:00 +0000

Denver saw an outpouring of celebrity love during last week’s DNC, with Ben Affleck leading the philanthropic pack.

On the Tuesday night, Affleck took part in a poker tournament, along with Richard Dreyfuss and Montel Williams, which ultimately raised over $60,000 for the Paralyzed Veterans of America.

“A lot of important organizations use this environment and the people who are here, celebrities, members of Congress, to try and raise money. This is not a Democratic or Republican group, this is a group serving our veterans,” Affleck said of the charity.

Robin Hood Gets Merry For Charity!

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

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.

Idol Talk From Alicia Keys

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 09:34:53 +0000

While Idol Gives Back sang and danced its way into the hearts and pockets of America on Wednesday night, it was the words of Alicia Keys that perhaps reflected the thoughts of many people around the world.

“If AIDS got half the attention that the media give to celebrity dramas, this issue would be well on the way to being solved,” said the singer. “It’s crazy… how you can change the lives of people forever for the price of a pair of shoes.”

The singer appeared on the show in a clip filmed during a recent trip to Africa, and urged viewers to donate. Keys established the Keep A Child Alive Foundation to directly assist children affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa, and although her charity did not benefit from Wednesday’s show, other organizations such as the Children’s Defense Fund, the Global Fund For AIDS, and Save the Children will receive some of the $22 million already raised from donations to Idol Gives Back.

Idol Gives Back On Wednesday

Tue, 08 Apr 2008 08:11:00 +0000

It will be raining philanthropic celebrities on Wednesday night when American Idol Gives Back airs on the Fox Network. The “star clouds” are set to burst with a gala of music, fun, appearances, and surprises – all in the name of charity.

Idol host Ryan Seacrest will serve as Master of Ceremonies for the event, which was taped in front of a lively audience at the Kodak Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday night, and producers expect this year’s event to raise over $100 million for charity.

“Tonight isn’t just about raising money,” said Brad Pitt, one of the many guests to attend the gala. “Sometimes, to help people, we’ve got to travel outside of our comfort zone to really understand another situation.”

Clothes Off Our Back Holding Emmy Auction

Sat, 09 Sep 2006 19:45:42 +0000

Clothes Off Our Back is holding its Fifth Annual Emmy Auction, allowing fans to bid on clothing and accessories worn by winners, nominees and attendees on the red carpet.

Some of the items available include ipods signed by a variety of stars, a cell phone from “24” signed by Kiefer Sutherland, a tie worn by Denis Leary, Katherine Heigl’s earrings and a one-of-a-kind diamond encrusted brooch by Neil Lane worn by “Dancing with the Stars’” Samantha Harris and valued at $25,000.

The auction runs until September 15, and proceeds benefit the emergency relief efforts in Darfur, Children’s Defense Fund and Cure Autism Now.