There are times when it is difficult to wrap one’s head around the purpose of a celebrity charity event. In the most tiresome of scenarios, a star can attach their name to a cause, simply throw some cash in it’s direction and sadly, and in many ways rightfully, sleep soundly that night feeling as if they made a positive change.
There is a “Show and Glow” mentality that pervades many of the “charity” events in Hollywood, where stars do little more than show up so that they can bask in the glow of their own affected altruism.
With that in mind, the 3rd Annual “Peace Please” Gala hosted by Children Mending Hearts was an evening-long lesson in passion and zeal. In an event that celebrated an arts and cultural exchange program with homeless children in the US and refugee children suffering from armed conflict worldwide, not only did the stars come out in Hollywood, but they came out embodying the spirit of the evening, which was to, “Encourage, Educate and Empower.”
And just in case anything was missing from that message, Mistress of Ceremonies Aisha Tyler covered her bets by stating, “The best part of this job, is you get to party for peace!”
The dinner and silent auction opened with inner-city high school cheerleading and featured musical performances from Five For Fighting, Band From TV and child piano prodigy Ethan Bortnick. As story, after heart-wrenching story unfolded onstage, it was impossible to find a dry eye in the cozy confines of The Music Box in Los Angeles.
But, then again, this was an evening that welcomed misty eyes, and throats that were choked up enough to welcome deservedly open wallets. Though on hand to present an award, Ben Affleck, who is the driving force behind the Eastern Congo Initiative, summarized his desire to get more involved by saying to Tonic, “There was a time in my life where I was feeling like that I had to be doing something profound … I wanted to be different, to make a difference.”
And make a difference he did, throwing his considerable celebrity heft behind several big-name charities, but being “different” wasn’t enough for the actor, Affleck had to get involved in a way that also made him feel informed.
“I spent kind of a year of post-graduate style study,” the actor tells Tonic. “I traveled to seven countries around Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, Tanzania, the South of Sudan…. And then met with academics, leaders, survivors, people on the ground and tried to do everything that I could to learn about the situation and understand it, what led up to it and to put together this initiative in the way that I thought would be most helpful.”
No matter who you are, it’s always nice when your friends back you up, and Affleck had plenty of Hollywood backing Friday night with the likes of Jimmy Kimmel, Kate Walsh, Alyssa Milano, and Rosario Dawson in attendance.
“He’s not just one of these guys that goes on TV and talks about these charities,” Kimmel tells Tonic, “He goes to Africa, a lot, and he spends a lot of time there. I know it sounds ridiculous, but it’s inspiring.”
Echoing that sentiment, Milano could only add, “I can’t speak for Ben, but I don’t think that celebrity has any warrant unless you’re doing something good with your voice.”
Loading…
Photo by piroutte26 via Flickr.
