Sandra Bullock, Keanu Reeves and other stars who gave up a luxurious life. Celebrities known for their kind and selfless acts

GR continues a series of articles in support of the largest charity event in Russia called “Soulful Bazar”.

“Soulful Bazar” is a project aimed at popularizing charity among city residents, which talks about the activities of various non-profit organizations, shows options for participating in charity and offers to choose a convenient and enjoyable way for each of us to help.

Today we're highlighting powerful and touching acts of kindness performed by famous people around the world.

Robert Downey Jr. gave a disabled child a prosthetic arm in the shape of Iron Man

Robert Downey Jr. supported a University of Florida student's project called Limbitless Solutions, which creates low-cost bionic prosthetics for young children. This is not the first time that the film actor has done good deeds: in 2014, he specially dressed up in his famous Iron Man suit to bring joy to little boy.

Johnny Depp came as his favorite hero to the hospital to visit sick children



While filming the next part of “Pirates” Caribbean Sea", the actor took time out from filming to visit sick children in a hospital in Brisbane, Australia. The actor's unexpected visit caused a real pleasant shock among the young patients at the hospital, which treats newborns and children under the age of 16. According to eyewitnesses, the 52-year-old actor handed out engraved coins to children and tried to devote at least a little of his time to each child.

This is not the first time that Johnny Depp comes to the hospital as the pirate Jack Sparrow. According to him, he never warns anyone about his arrival in order to give the children a surprise.

Will.i.am donated $750,000 children from disadvantaged families





The popular singer donated his entire fee for participating in the show “The Voice” charitable organization The Prince's Foundation, dedicated to providing education to disadvantaged children in the UK.

Chulpan Khamatova helpschildren with oncological and hematological diseases


In 2006, the actress became a co-founder of the “ Gift a life". Thanks to her foundation, withToday in Russia they have learned to help 85-90% of children with this terrible diagnosis. IN 2014 magazine Ogonyok" placed Chulpan in 14th place in the ranking« 100 most influential women in Russia."


The Konstantin Khabensky Charitable Foundation helps children with complex illnesses




During the first five-year plan, the foundation managed to save 130 children's lives. IN interview with the publication« Moscow News” he told why he decided to do this: “I just remember those eyes. Not the eyes of a child, because he is not afraid of death yet - he has not acquired anything yet, to be afraid of losing it. I remember my mother's eyes, especially when there has been a complete transition from negative to positive. At such moments, something settles in you and your colleagues. Something so important appears, that stays with you forever.”


Gosha Kutsenko Foundationhelps children diagnosed with cerebral palsy


« Step Together" was founded in 2011, since then the fundorganizes charity concerts and auctions twice a year, where he invites friends for support. Fundprovides legal assistance, advises families, where children with the diagnosis grow up, purchases medical equipment and medicines.

Natalia Vodianova and her"Naked Hearts"

First among the kindest

Rating "Most good people in the world” was headed by the incomparable and versatile actor Johnny Depp, who, both in films and in life, always looks quite non-trivial, unusual and extremely sexy. The star of the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy and alternative cinema, Depp recently helped his fan, seventeen-year-old Sophie Wilkinson, come out of a coma.

The girl was in a coma for about five months, and her parents began to lose all hope of their daughter regaining consciousness, having already tried literally everything. There was only one remedy left, funny at first glance - the voice of their daughter’s favorite actor, that is, Depp. They wrote a touching letter for Depp, asking him, if not to come to their daughter himself, then at least to record his voice. That's what Johnny did, recording an audio track where he parodied himself famous character- Captain Jack Sparrow. Hearing this voice, Sophie moved her legs for the first time, and then began the story of her gradual recovery.

It is also known that the Hollywood actor quite often visits children's hospitals in the guise of Jack Sparrow.

Melody will save lives

And this story is not the only one of its kind. Former member of the once popular group “Spice Girls” Geri Halliwell sang for one of her not quite ordinary fans. Jessica Knight is fourteen years old and suffered a severe stroke that left her bedridden. Jeri came to her clinic, where she sang just a couple of lines from her song, after which the girl began to control her arms and legs. Now, according to some sources, Jessica feels much better, but she just doesn’t remember what specific song the lead singer of “Pepperchinok” sang to her.

Seller of good mood

Actress Renee Zellweger, who is known for her films about the charming Bridget Jones, once went into the Wendy's store, where she noticed her looking longingly at shoes from famous designer"Manolo Blahnik" saleswoman. The actress said that she perfectly understood a woman’s desire to be beautiful always and everywhere, and that’s why she...bought these shoes, and then, when the saleswoman returned to her workplace, anonymously gave them to her, simply wrapping them beautifully and placing them on her desk.


American dream

The desperate boor Colin Farel and the scandalous TV presenter Oprah Winfrey were also impressed. For the past five years, Colin Farrell has been helping a man without a job or place of residence, a professional beggar named Stress, with money and clothes.


And the TV personality surprised everyone at one of her shows, where she gave each viewer a car, and one homeless girl - money to get a decent education, as well as for clothes and a beauty salon.


Probably, it is precisely stories like this that constitute the essence of such a phenomenon as “ American dream", when no desire is limited by the limits of fantasy.

We are used to admiring the fame, influence and fees of world-class stars, but we no longer believe that they are capable of humane, noble and, most importantly, selfless actions. But among celebrities there are always those who donate part of their fees to good causes, and it is very pleasant that there are more and more such stars every year. Today we will focus on celebrities whose noble deeds have captivated the whole world.

Oprah Winfrey

Oprah Winfrey has long been known not only as the star of the most popular talk show in the States, but also as a philanthropist. For several years now she has topped the list of the most generous stars. By 2012, the amount that Oprah Winfrey spent on the education of children and women in developing countries alone was $400 million. She spends no less on health care. Oprah also founded a school for gifted girls from poor South African families.

This is just a small part of what the star does: she has participated in annual marathons, clothing sales and other charity events. The celebrity donates the funds collected in this way to the cancer foundation, and part of it goes to help African children.

Charlize Theron

Recently, the fragile American actress was awarded the title of UN Ambassador to Combat Violence against Women. Charlize Theron knows about this problem better than anyone else. The tyrant father treated her and her mother cruelly, and when she was 15 years old, he died from the bullet of his wife, who thus protected her daughter from his attacks.


In 2004, at the Oscars, the actress received a statuette for her role in the film “Monster,” where she played a victim of violence. For this role she had to change a lot in appearance. Charlize also participated in a fundraiser with actress Salma Hayek for a major charity, Virgin Unite, which helps oppressed women in Morocco.

Madonna

The American pop diva does not like to show off her good deeds, so they often remain secret, but some of them are still heard. For example, during a tour in Moscow, the singer not only gave a long-awaited concert to Russian fans, but also made a contribution to the development of one of the capital’s boarding schools. The star asked not to disclose the amount that Madonna donated for the improvement of the school.


In 2016, the singer’s money was used to build new school for African children in Malawia. The cost of all work related to the construction and arrangement of the institution exceeded $15 million. The singer regularly holds charity concerts, and donates the proceeds to victims of tsunamis, earthquakes and others. natural disasters in Asia. One of Madonna's last noble acts was to donate $250,000 to victims of the earthquake in Haiti.

Jennifer Hudson

Jennifer came to the decision to open a charitable foundation after an unknown person entered her home and shot her mother, brother and 7-year-old nephew. This happened in 2008, when the actress’s career was just beginning to gain momentum. Then Jennifer had a hard time recovering from what happened, and a month later she founded her own foundation called the Hudson-King Foundation, which helps people whose relatives were killed. The foundation provides food and hygiene products, clothing, and the specialists working there provide professional psychological assistance.


Angelina Jolie

The Hollywood star is well known to the world for his good deeds. And, as the site wants to note, she does them not for the sake of PR or additional popularity, but at the call of her heart. The actress has seen with her own eyes many times the conditions they live in ordinary people in third world countries - for example, several scenes of the film "Lara Croft" were filmed in Cambodia. After filming, Angelina Jolie visited refugee camps in Sierra Leone, Pakistan and Tanzania with humanitarian aid in the form of food and medicine. She not only sponsored the purchases, but also took on the cost of living expenses for UN employees traveling with her. These actions did not go unnoticed - in 2001, Jolie was awarded the honorary title of UN Goodwill Ambassador.


Over the next 17 years, she visited more than thirty countries and donated tens of millions of dollars to help those in need. Even military actions do not interfere with this strong woman: She visited camps in Libya and Iraq even during turbulent periods. By personal example, Angelina encourages donations for the benefit of refugees and actively promotes charity in the world media. A few years ago, she published an autobiographical book about travel, and then made a film, which vividly showed the living conditions of people who are constantly in need of help.

Keanu Reeves

Not all stars like increased attention and fuss around them. Keanu Reeves belongs to the category of celebrities who prefer to lead modest life without mansions and expensive cars. The actor distributed 90% of the fee from the cult film “The Matrix” (and this, for a moment, is more than $10 million for the first part alone) to make-up artists, special effects specialists and other film set workers. In addition, Keanu gave away his 12 motorcycles to the stuntmen who worked on the film.


The actor's sister, who has leukemia, encouraged him to open charitable foundation helping cancer patients. Keanu does not suffer from vanity, which is why this organization never received the name of a celebrity. The actor also fights for animal rights and supports initiatives related to environmental protection.

And he is completely devoid of star fever

He can often be seen on the street next to the homeless - he buys them food, clothes, talks to them. Keanu believes that to help those in need it is not necessary to go to third world countries, because everyone can look around and see a person who needs help.

Konstantin Khabensky

People's lives often change after grief strikes their family, and stars are no exception. On the first day of winter 2008, Konstantin Khabensky lost his beloved wife Anastasia, and this event plunged him into a state of deep depression. A whole year before this, the actor fought for the life of his beloved until the last, selling off property, agreeing to any roles and getting into debt.


In memory of his deceased wife, he founded the Konstantin Khabensky Charitable Foundation. Now Khabensky lives in a modest apartment, and donates most of the money he earns to a charitable foundation. The actor does his best to help those who have a chance in life: with money, housing, and finding the best doctors. He often travels to orphanages: he gives gifts to the pupils and plays with them.


For the first time, he received a call regarding charity issues several years ago: doctors gave Khabensky’s number to a woman who lacked 200 thousand rubles for her son’s treatment. Konstantin personally brought money for the operation and asked the doctors to call him if anyone else needed help. In the 10 years that have passed since the death of Anastasia Khabenskaya, the number of children whom the actor saved from cancer has exceeded one and a half hundred people.
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The most long-awaited gift that people expect from celebrities is a personal meeting. And the stars are happy to do this. There have always been many such famous people both in our country and abroad. You can recall the famous doctor Nikolai Ivanovich Pirogov, who was known for his charitable activities.

Wheelchair basketball with Gerard Pique

Famous defender of the Barcelona football club Gerard Pique sat down in wheelchair specifically to be on an equal footing with people in wheelchairs diagnosed with paralysis and to play basketball with them. Basketball first appeared in the United States around the 40s and has recently been included in the list of programs of the Paralympic Games.


This event took place in Spain at the Guttman Institute - a specialized medical Center, which provides care to people with brain or spinal injuries. The event was organized by the Laures Appeal Foundation, which - “ Sport for good", and their main goal is to unite together social work And physical activity. About 15 people took part in the fund's action famous people athletes from various sports disciplines. Among them is Gerard Pique.

The Zapashny brothers visited the Research Institute of Pediatric Surgery with a tiger

Institute of Pediatric Traumatology and Surgery ( research institute) Zapashny brothers visited with his ward tigress Marfa. One of the sick children dreamed about this Ivan Voronin, who came under fire in the city of Shakhtersk. The boy has no legs, one arm and almost complete loss of vision. Vanya’s father and younger brother, and he himself was evacuated to Russia.

Askold and Edgar, having laid Marfa in the hall of the institute, brought Vanya to her. The boy stroked the animal and said that he was not afraid at all.

After the visit Edgar shared his thoughts: “The words “courage” and “children” should not be interconnected, but what we saw today cannot be called differently: when a nine-year-old child courageously fights for life and at the same time finds the strength to rejoice. Holding Vanya in my arms, tears welled up in my eyes, to hide it.”

Before leaving, the Zapashny brothers gave the child a small toy tiger cub in memory of their meeting.

Maria Sharapova gave a master class for Sunny Logan

Famous tennis player, founder of a charitable foundation providing support to victims of Chernobyl nuclear power plant - Maria Sharapova gave a lesson to Sunny Logan, a girl who was able to overcome a disease such as a rare form of lymphoma. Sunny had long dreamed of meeting a famous athlete. Even before her illness, the girl was fond of tennis, which, according to her, helped her overcome this serious illness.

After meeting with Sunny Logan, Maria Sharapova shared her impressions: “The girl plays tennis quite well and can become a very good athlete.”

Robert Downey Jr. gave seven-year-old Alex an “iron hand”

Robert Downey-Jr., who played in the film “Iron Man,” gave Alex Pring a prosthesis similar to the hand of its famous hero. The boy was missing one arm from birth. The prosthesis was manufactured by Limbitless Solutions, the founder of which is Alberto Manero.

The goal of his project is to produce inexpensive bionic prostheses for children from low-income families. The price of one prosthesis is about $350, but a prosthesis that is almost indistinguishable from a real arm or leg is quite affordable.

Alex Pringi happily demonstrated the capabilities of the prosthesis donated by his favorite actor.

Igor Akinfeev invited a boy from a hospice to the CSKA sports base

Famous goalkeeper of the CSKA football team Igor Akinfeev organized a meeting with a little fan Sergei Zenkin at the CSKA sports base. Sergei is being treated at the First Hospice with a diagnosis of a brain tumor, which, unfortunately, is inoperable.

At the CSKA base, Sergei met not only with his favorite goalkeeper, but also with his coach, Leonid Slutsky. I also took photos with players Zoran Tosic, Vasily Berezutskiy and Sergei Ignashevich.

Sergei discussed football news with his idol, talked about past matches and upcoming plans, and was also able to attend the team’s training session. In addition, the boy told Igor how he learned about his diagnosis and how he was being treated. During the story, the boy almost burst into tears.

After the meeting, Sergei Zenkin’s mother said: “Meetings like this are very supportive. And the rest will follow.”

Actors from the TV series “Voronins” helped Liza get from the hospice to the film pavilion

Ward from the children's hospice "House with a Lighthouse" 8 year old Lisa with the help of the Voronins, I visited film set. The girl has complete loss of vision due to an incurable form of cancer, but this does not stop her from listening to the series “Voronin” 10 episodes a day.

On the set, Lisa tried herself as a cameraman, giving the command “Cut!” and “Motor!”, read the next episode and held the microphone. The child felt at home in the film pavilion; the girl even gave some non-childish advice to the director of the series.

Yulia Savicheva sang especially for Sonya at the hospice

14-year-old Sonya, a hospice patient, told the staff of the Vera charity foundation that she dreams of meeting Yulia Savicheva. And the very next day the girl met the singer.

Sonya has an inoperable brain tumor and during the meeting she was in in serious condition, but despite this, Sonya and Yulia spent almost 2 hours together. They talked and sang songs. Savicheva brought her autographed CDs and cakes for her.

Before leaving, Julia invited Sonya to her concert and promised to find her eyes in the hall.

The deceased Lokomotiv hockey player secretly helped sick children

And it’s impossible not to remember Ivana Tkachenko.

Ivan Tkachenko, the leader of the Yaroslavl Lokomotiv, secretly helped children with cancer until his death.

16 year old Diana Ibragimova from Voronezh they made a terrible diagnosis - acute lymphoblastic leukosis. The girl could only be saved by an operation, which costs a lot of money. And only after the death of Ivan Tkachenko, Diana’s mother found out who saved her daughter from death.

Ivan Tkachenko transferred 500,000 rubles twice for the treatment of Diana Ibragimova.

Sometimes it seems to us that the world is closed in its cruelty and pursuit of money, but this is not so! Evidence of this is the good deeds that people do famous people. And how many more things ordinary people do, we just don’t know about it...

Every person should do good deeds, no matter how global they are. Someone will say that these stars did not do anything special and in their situation everyone would have done the same, but not everyone can boast of even such a manifestation of kindness and compassion for their neighbor, because for the most part people think only about themselves.

Keanu Reeves

IN last years What came to light was that Reeves doesn't care much about money. In fact, he went so far as to give $80 million of his Matrix royalties to the special effects team and costume designers who worked on the trilogy. He explained his action by saying that he believes that the success of the film series is due to these people, and not to him.

Stephen Fry


Stephen Fry has touched not just one life, but countless others with his openness about his mental health struggles. Although many see such problems as a stigma that harms their careers, Fry speaks openly about his problems and has become president of the mental health charity Reason, which raises public awareness of mental illness and is the voice of those who suffer from them.

Russell Brand


Brand talked about how he knows what it's like to be at the bottom of his life as a former alcoholic and heroin addict, which is why he spends time with homeless people in his area. He has been photographed and spotted countless times with homeless people - taking them to breakfast and helping them in every possible way.

Will.i.am

Will.i.am recently donated his entire salary from The Voice (around $750,000) to The Prince's Foundation, a charity dedicated to providing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) education to disadvantaged children in the UK. He hopes for the same success that the program has had in his hometown, Los Angeles County, where he is now open. modern center STEM.

Woody Harrelson

While attending a great party in New York, Woody was approached by a homeless woman looking for alms. Instead of turning her down, Woody decided to give the woman $600. According to the Daily News, when the woman recognized the actor, she said, “Thanks Woody! White people can still jump!”

John Cena


This athlete has fulfilled the most wishes for the Make Your Dream charity foundation - he has 400 wishes (100 of which were fulfilled from June 2013 to February 2014).

Ryan Gosling


A British journalist was rescued by an actor when she almost walked onto the road in front of a taxi in New York. She tweeted about the incident, saying she was looking the other way as a lifelong Londoner when Gosling grabbed her arm and pulled her back onto the pavement.

Mila Kunis


When a man who worked in her house collapsed on the floor from an attack, Mila came to his aid. After she supported him until the ambulance arrived, Mila even offered to go with him to the hospital to make sure he was safe.

Lady Gaga


Lady Gaga is known for the fact that she uses her popularity to promote self-belief, despite how different we are from others. After she heard that one of her fans committed suicide because he was taunted about his sexuality, she dedicated her concert to him and had his photo on the screens everywhere - it was an act of unity with fan and other people from all over the world suffering in similar situations.

T.I.


This rapper gave up everything to convince a man not to commit suicide. The police tried to reason with the man to come down from the parapet. He considered it necessary to help, telling the man that everything would be fine and that not everything in the world was as bad as it seemed.

Angelina Jolie


Jolie remains a great philanthropist even after years of success and incredible popularity. She even decided to make In the Land of Blood and Honey as her directorial debut, a film telling the story of women who were subjected to mass rape during the Bosnian war. This choice was clearly not made with the aim of becoming famous, since it was filmed and written in Bosnian.

Zach Galifinakis


Zach saved a homeless woman. Mimi, a woman Zach knew from the local laundromat long before he became famous, found herself on the street. As soon as Zach found out about this, he offered to pay the apartment rent for her. He even took her with him to the premiere of the film Bachelor Party: Part III.

Patrick Dempsey


According to TMZ, the teenager lost control of his Mustang, and after the car flipped several times, it finally stopped in front of the actor's house. Dempsey ran outside to help. to a young driver and, using a crowbar, freed the teenager from the car, after which he called the rescue service.

Johnny Depp

After 9-year-old Beatrice asked Depp to help her rebel against teachers, the actor came to a London school for precisely this purpose.

Tyler Perry


After hearing that a woman suffering from cerebral palsy had her customized 2000 Chrysler Town & Country stolen from her home in Georgia, director Perry offered to give her another van.

Gary Sinese


Since playing the role of Lieutenant Dan in Forrest Gump, Sinise has been committed to helping disabled veterans and their families. He recently took 50 war-wounded soldiers on an all-expenses-paid trip to Disneyland in California.

Tom Cruise


One day, while he was relaxing on his yacht, Cruise saw a sinking, burning sailboat. Instead of waiting for someone to save them, Tom himself swam to the sailboat and helped the victims escape.