Libby and I have written many blogs detailing the philanthropic efforts of Hollywood’s elite. Here now are more heartfelt moves made by celebrities to benefit those less fortunate:
Rick Springfield
According to news reports, the pop singer, whose string of hits in the 1980s included “Jessie’s Girl,” is coming to the aid of a little girl who is fighting for her life. Springfield will perform a free concert in southeast Missouri to help raise money for 12-year-old Sahara Aldridge who is currently suffering from brain-stem cancer.
The concert will take place December 8th at the Show Me Center, in Cape Girardeau, Missouri. Proceeds will help Aldridge’s family pay for medical expenses. (Springfield is a longtime friend of the Aldridge family.) In addition, Springfield is using his website to encourage fans to support the Aldridge family spiritually and financially.
According to Springfield’s website, since her diagnosis two months ago, Sahara has spent most of her time receiving treatment at the Children’s Hospital at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Sahara’s mother says her daughter has shown signs of progress–the tumor’s growth has been stopped, and Sahara has regained some of the motor skills the tumor interfered with. Last week, Sahara came home for the first time in months and attended two benefit events that raised more than $20,000 to pay for travel and medical expenses.
Oprah Winfrey
The talk-show queen who says she limits her public appearances to events “that really matter” headlined a fundraiser at a private college for black women, encouraging about 300 guests to support education and give back to their community.
“You can’t continue to move forward unless you give back what you are given,” Oprah said Friday. “It is our calling.”
According to news reports, the famed talk-show host spoke at Bennett College as part of a $50 million fundraising campaign co-chaired by poet and novelist (and Oprah’s mentor) Maya Angelou. While there Oprah spoke about the importance of education.
“It is important that this institution continues to thrive,” Oprah said, “and offer opportunities for women in this country and around the world.”
The reports didn’t include the price for hearing Oprah speak… how much would you pay?
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