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Good@Giving

Using stardom to fight for good causes.

By N. F. Mendoza
From Reader's Digest

Gary Sinise, Laura Hillenbrand, Sela Ward, Tyra Banks

Tools for Learning
Two goodwill trips to Iraq in 2003 led Gary Sinise, star of "CSI: NY," to start Operation Iraqi Children. "It was a tremendous feeling to see these children hugging and kissing our soldiers," says Sinise. When he returned home, he and his friend Laura Hillenbrand, author of Seabiscuit, formed the charity, which puts together school-supply kits for Iraqi children. So far, the organization has sent about 100,000 kits, shipped for free via FedEx. "Every time a box of supplies is delivered by our troops, it will be another small victory in helping to win the hearts and minds of the Iraqis," says Sinise.

A Home of Their Own
In 2001, when actress Sela Ward learned there was no place in her home state of Mississippi for foster children who hadn't found permanent homes, she formed the Hope Village Foundation. She purchased an old orphanage on 30 acres in Meridian and turned it into Hope Village for Children, which houses up to 32 children, from newborns to teenagers, in three cottages. The children can stay until they turn 18, with siblings kept together. Ward spends a month in Meridian each summer, and visits the Village throughout the year.

Stronger Lives
One of the most beautiful women in the world, supermodel Tyra Banks gets letters all the time from her teenage fans. Not all of them are upbeat. Some, she says, "show disturbing patterns of self-doubt, bad body image and peer pressures -- feelings I experienced as a young woman." In 1999, Banks launched the TZONE project, a weeklong camp in Los Angeles for girls ages 13-15 focusing on such topics as confidence, relationships, and diversity, followed up by quarterly weekend summits and community service projects throughout the year. So far there have been 262 "graduates." Banks, TZONE's primary funder, hopes to get corporate and private support so she can expand the program to other cities.


Brian Littrell, Andre Agassi, Doug Flutie, David Hyde Pierce

The Heart of Things
When he was just five, Brian Littrell was hospitalized with an infection of his heart valves and wasn't expected to survive. Thanks in large part to doctors at St. Joseph Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky, he did -- and went on to worldwide fame as a member of the Backstreet Boys. In 1999 he founded the Brian Littrell Healthy Heart Club for Kids at St. Joseph. Available to children ages 8-12 who suffer from heart problems or are at risk, the program has provided heart-healthy education, exercise, nutrition and counseling to about 150 kids so far. "Children and parents need a place to learn what's good and what isn't for your heart," Littrell says, "and that's what we provide."

Betting on Success
Las Vegas may be the city of lights, but for poor children who live on the edge, it can sometimes be a gloomy place. In 1994, tennis superstar and Vegas native Andre Agassi started his Andre Agassi Charitable Foundation, an umbrella of 11 charities that provide educational and recreational programs for at-risk Las Vegas kids. All of the foundation's administrative and overhead costs are funded through contributions made by either Agassi himself or his business, so donations go directly to the charities. The major fund-raiser is the Grand Slam for Children, held in the fall, featuring a concert, dinner and live auction. To date the annual event has raised $42 million for the charities.

Understanding Autism
Ten years ago, San Diego Chargers quarterback Doug Flutie and his wife, Laurie, learned their three-year-old son, Doug, Jr., was autistic. By 2000, they had started the Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism, devoted to raising public awareness about the neurological disorder that affects an estimated 300,000 children in the United States. "My wife and I noticed how expensive it was for therapy, special toys and other items for Dougie," says Flutie. "We were fortunate to be able to afford such things and wanted to help other families who couldn't." The foundation, which has given away $3 million to date, also provides grants to organizations seeking the cause and a cure for autism.

Fighting an Old Fight
Emmy-winning actor David Hyde Pierce, best known for his role as Dr. Niles Crane on TV's "Frasier," is a national spokesperson for the Alzheimer's Association. Both his father and his grandfather suffered from the disease, which affects some 4.5 million Americans today. "Alzheimer's left my family feeling helpless and hopeless, but the Alzheimer's Association gave us hope, and a chance to help," says Pierce. He is committed to raising funds for research into a cure for Alzheimer's, warning that by the year 2050, some 16 million Americans could be afflicted. The Alzheimer's Association has invested more than $165 million to support Alzheimer's research.


Leonardo DiCaprio, Montel Williams, Amy Grant

Trees for Life
Every year, weather and fire batter the arid coast of Southern California, taking down millions of oxygen-producing trees. Since 2001, actor Leonardo DiCaprio has supported TreePeople, a 31-year-old nonprofit that focuses on water and energy conservation, flood prevention, storm-water pollution and trees -- the group has planted nearly two million of them. DiCaprio's own foundation purchases tree dedications to honor friends and colleagues, and encourages his fans to donate to TreePeople's mountain reforestation efforts in areas destroyed by the 2003 fires.

Not Just Talk
When talk-show host Montel Williams was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1999, he thought it was "a death sentence." But within a year, he'd launched the Montel Williams MS Foundation, which donates 100 percent of the money it raises to researchers working on a cure for the disease, which afflicts as many as one million Americans. "There are several treatments for MS now," he says, "but they're all stopgap measures." To date, Williams's foundation has disbursed $603,000 to five different organizations.

Giving Kids a Chance
Gospel and pop songstress Amy Grant has put her time on the line as a spokesperson for two of her favorite charities, Scholarship America and Compassion International. Over the years, Scholarship America has given more than $1 billion to over a million needy college students. "Imagine how different those lives would be without those gifts," says Grant, a mother of four, who has donated money from CD sales to the organization. Compassion International offers spiritual, emotional and economic support, and pairs donors with children from developing countries who are living in poverty. "These kids are rich in love, family and tradition," Grant says, "but poor in opportunity. The one-on-one relationships that can form through letter-writing or giving a simple gift on the child's birthday is amazing." Grant and her family have sponsored three children through Compassion International.


Star-Studded Philanthropy Hall of Famers

For decades, celebrities have lent a helping hand to a variety of good causes. Here are some of the heaviest lifters.
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