The $10 billion donation Microsoft founder Bill Gates gave to his foundation in January 2010 to distribute vaccines to children across the globe was the largest single charitable gift ever, according to the UK Daily Mail. Celebrities continue to use their influence and assets to help those who need the help the most. As the holidays approach, here are three celebrities who remind us all that it’s better to give than receive.
Clinton Foundation
Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been teasing the public by recently hinting she may run for president again in 2016. In the meantime Hillary, Bill and Chelsea Clinton are using their time to further several causes through their foundation. The Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation was founded in 2001 at the conclusion of his final term in the White House. Originally dubbed the William J. Clinton Foundation, it has contributed more than $230 million to several initiatives in 2012, according to financial statements. The largest expenditures went to the Clinton Health Access Initiative, which aims to strengthen the health care system in developing countries and provide access to medicine to treat HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis.
Wildlife conservation is high on the list of Clinton family priorities as well, and the foundation recently teamed up with several nonprofits and nongovernment organizations to stop the mass slaughter of elephants across the continent of Africa.
Doctors Without Borders
Natural disasters can strike at anytime, as the world recently witnessed with the typhoon in the Philippines. Justin Bieber has already said he would sign the paint cans he used to spray graffiti on a wall in Los Angeles and donate the proceeds to a yet-to-be named charity benefiting the victims.
Actress Sandra Bullock took it a step further when a massive earthquake struck Haiti in 2010. The star of “28 Days” and “The Blind Side” was so touched by the images of devastation that she immediately donated $1 million to Doctors Without Borders. Founded in 1971, the French humanitarian organization provides immediate medical assistance to victims of war, malnutrition and and any other catastrophic events. The organization received a Nobel Peace Prize in 1999 as a result of its dedication. Bullock told OK Magazine that she gave the donation to Doctors Without Borders because she wanted it to make an immediate impact on those effected by the earthquake.
Facebook Philanthropy
Mark Zuckerberg made headlines in 2010 when he donated $100 million of his own money to the Newark, N.J., school system, despite having no personal connections to the area. The Facebook founder and CEO continued his generosity last year when he donated 18 million shares of Facebook stock to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation. The stocks were worth about $500 million at the time, according to the Verge. Zuckerberg said he and the foundation’s leadership would determine how the funds would be divided among several worthwhile causes.
Written by Mike Brooks. Mike is an entertainment guru and recent mass communications graduate. He’s also an aspiring screenwriter.
