Which Celebrities Put Star-Power to Good Use?

Which Celebrities Put Star-Power to Good Use?

February 15th, 2013. With award season upon us, it seems like you can’t turn on the television or pick up a newspaper without viewing the famous. Would you look at those celebrities differently if you knew which stars used their fame to help others? Did you know Tina Fey supports the  National Kidney Foundation? (Photo by Stefanie Keenan/WireImage) The nonprofit rating organization, Charity Navigator, has compiled a list of celebrities who put their star-power to good use.

Actors Kerry Washington, with Jeff Daniels at the Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, supports the Boys and Girls Clubs (Photo by Michael Buckner/WireImage)

Actor Kerry Washington, seen here with Jeff Daniels at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, supports the nonprofit Boys & Girls Clubs of America and V-Day, a global activist movement to end violence against women and girls. (Photo by Michael Buckner/WireImage)

LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 27: Actress Jennifer Lawrence attends the 19th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2013 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jason Merritt/WireImage)

Charities cultivate relationships with stars for their ability to increase the public’s awareness of their charitable endeavors and thus stimulate more donations. Celebrities can be spokespersons, board members or even a founder of a charity. These stars were out at the Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 27, 2013 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jason Merritt/WireImage)

Sigourney Weaver supports the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International.

Sigourney Weaver supports the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International.

 

It is wonderful that celebrities have the power to make us aware of causes that need our support. But the onus is still on us to do our homework before making a contribution. A celebrity’s endorsement simply can not serve as a substitute for researching a charity. First of all, even if you are the number one fan of a particular celebrity, you two probably do not have exactly the same philanthropic interests. Second, the celebrity may not have thoroughly vetted the charity’s finances, commitment to accountability and transparency or its programmatic accomplishments — all steps that savvy donors take before making a donation.

Charity Navigator presented a list of celebrity-related charities to help you determine which may be worthy of a contribution from you. While this certainly isn’t an exhaustive list, it is an extensive list of celebrity-charity relationships. The Charity Navigator rating shows

 

Charity Name Rating
A Place Called Home 4 stars
Al Roker
Africare 4 stars
Nelson Mandela
Alaska Conservation Foundation 4 stars
Jimmy Carter
Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation 4 stars
Afleet Alex, Alex Gordon, Anna Gunn, Bailee Madison, Cindy Crawford, Jordin Sparks, Marc Summers, Peter Facinelli
American Academy in Berlin 4 stars
Henry Kissinger
American Museum of Natural History 4 stars
Michael Bloomberg, Tom Brokaw
amfAR 4 stars
Elizabeth Taylor, Harry Belafonte, Kenneth Cole, Sharon Stone
Big Brothers Big Sisters of America 4 stars
Kate Snow, Lynn Swan, Matt Lauer, Nick Lachey, Patricia Heaton, Wayne Brady
The Boomer Esiason Foundation 4 stars
Boomer Esiason
BRAC USA 4 stars
Mahabub Hossain
Canine Companions for Independence 4 stars
Dean Koontz
The Carter Center 4 stars
Jimmy Carter, Rosalynn Carter
Center for Economic and Policy Research 4 stars
Danny Glover
College Summit 4 stars
Don Cheadle
Columbus Zoo and Aquarium 4 stars
Jack Hanna
Disabled Veterans’ LIFE Memorial Foundation 4 stars
Gary Sinise
Dream Foundation 4 stars
Priscilla Presley
Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation 4 stars
Gloria Reuben, Neal McDonough, Nigel Barker
Elton John AIDS Foundation 4 stars
Elton John, Jane Fonda, Whoopi Goldberg
Environmental Advocates of New York 4 stars
Blythe Danner
Fisher House Foundation 4 stars
Denzel Washington
Free the Slaves 4 stars
Desmond Tutu
Grassroot Soccer 4 stars
Ethan Zohn
Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association 4 stars
Betty White
Harlem RBI 4 stars
Mark Teixeira
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts 4 stars
George H. Bush, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Jimmy Carter, Laura Bush, Michelle Obama, Ronald Reagan
Keep a Child Alive 4 stars
Alicia Keys
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts 4 stars
Michael Bloomberg
Livestrong Foundation 4 stars
Lance Armstrong
Magic Johnson Foundation 4 stars
Earvin “Magic” Johnson
Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund 4 stars
Eva Longoria
Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research 4 stars
Michael J. Fox
National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc. 4 stars
Amy Grant, Bon Jovi, Donny Osmond, Martina McBride, Reba McEntire
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children 4 stars
John Walsh
National Kidney Foundation 4 stars
Rusty Wallace, Tina Fey
National Organization on Disability 4 stars
George H.W. Bush
Natural Resources Defense Council 4 stars
James Taylor, Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert Redford
Naval Aviation Museum Foundation 4 stars
George W. Bush
New York Restoration Project 4 stars
Bette Midler
Oceana 4 stars
January Jones, Kelsey Grammer, Pierce Brosnan, Ted Danson
Project A.L.S. 4 stars
Ben Stiller, Julianna Margulies
Rainforest Foundation US 4 stars
Sting , Trudie Styler
Refugees International 4 stars
Matt Dillon, Queen Noor Al-Hussein, Sam Waterson
Ronald McDonald House Charities 4 stars
Al Roker, Billy Bush, Carl Lewis, Cindy Crawford, Hayden Panettiere, Mario Lopez
Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation 4 stars
George Schultz, Nancy Reagan, Rudolph Giuliani, Rupert Murdoch, Steve Forbes, T. Boone Pickens
Shelter Network 4 stars
Maya Angelou
Special Olympics 4 stars
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bart Conner, Jackie Chan, Maria Shriver, Michael Phelps, Nadia Comaneci, Pierce Brosnan, Scott Hamilton, Timothy Shriver, Vanessa Williams, Yao Ming
Sundance Institute 4 stars
Robert Redford
The Sunlight Foundation 4 stars
Jimmy Wales
Tony La Russa’s Animal Rescue Foundation 4 stars
Tony La Russa
UCP Wheels for Humanity 4 stars
Ali MacGraw, Tim Allen
United Nations Foundation 4 stars
Ted Turner
United Way Worldwide 4 stars
Dolly Parton
V-Day 4 stars
Eve Ensler, Jane Fonda, Kerry Washington, Rosario Dawson, Salma Hayek
Vital Voices Global Partnership 4 stars
Diane von Furstenburg, Sally Field
Water.org 4 stars
Matt Damon
The Wild Animal Sanctuary 4 stars
Jessica Biel
WildAid 4 stars
Bo Derek, Harrison Ford, Leonardo DiCaprio, Yao Ming
Actors and Others for Animals 3 stars
Betty White, Doris Day, Joanne Worley, Loretta Swit
Adopt A Pet.com 3 stars
Drew Barrymore
After-School All-Stars 3 stars
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Kobe Bryant, Maria Shriver
Alaska Wilderness League 3 stars
Jimmy Carter
ALSAC – St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital 3 stars
Marlo Thomas
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research 3 stars
Dick Cheney
American Film Institute 3 stars
Charlton Heston, Gregory Peck, Steven Spielberg
American Friends of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra 3 stars
Itzhak Perlman, Zubin Mehta
American Heart Association 3 stars
Andie McDowell
American Humane Association 3 stars
Paula Abdul
American Parkinson Disease Association 3 stars
Muhammad Ali
America’s Promise Alliance 3 stars
Colin Powell
Baby Buggy 3 stars
Jessica Seinfeld
Baltimore Reads 3 stars
Cal Ripkin, Jr.
Best Buddies International 3 stars
David Caruso, Mark Montigny
Better World Fund 3 stars
Kofi Annan, Ted Turner
Blue Ridge Broadcasting Corporation 3 stars
Billy Graham
Boys & Girls Clubs of America 3 stars
Ashanti , Bill Clinton, Bill Cosby, Courtney Vance, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Denzel Washington, Edward James Olmos, Gen. Wesley Clark, Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Jimmy Rollins, John Mellencamp, John Singleton, Kerry Washington, Mario Lopez, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, Queen Latifah, Ruben Studdard, Shaquille O’Neal, Smokey Robinson, Swin Cash, Usher
Camp Boggy Creek 3 stars
Norman Schwarzkopf, Paul Newman
Camp Sunshine, Georgia 3 stars
Jeff Foxworthy, Julianne Chambliss, Saxby Chambliss
Careers through Culinary Arts Program 3 stars
Al Roker, Jacques Pepin, Marcus Samuelsson, Tim Zagat
Celebrity Fight Night Foundation 3 stars
Muhammad Ali
The Center for Strategic and International Studies 3 stars
Henry Kissinger
The Chi Chi Rodriguez Youth Foundation 3 stars
Chi Chi Rodriguez
Children Affected by AIDS Foundation 3 stars
Doris Roberts, James Gandolfini, Jamie Lee Curtis
The Children’s Health Fund 3 stars
Paul Simon
Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation 3 stars
Christopher Reeve
Coalition for Clean Air 3 stars
Ed Begley, Jr.
Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International 3 stars
Sigourney Weaver
Doug Flutie Jr. Foundation For Autism 3 stars
Doug Flutie
Eisenhower Fellowships 3 stars
Christie Todd Whitman, Colin Powell, George H.W. Bush, Henry Kissinger
Entertainment Industry Foundation 3 stars
Charlize Theron, Katie Couric, Pierce Brosnan
Farm Aid 3 stars
Dave Mathews, John Mellencamp, Neil Young, Willie Nelson
Freedom Alliance 3 stars
Oliver North
The Fresh Air Fund 3 stars
Mariah Carey, Tiki Barber
Geffen Playhouse 3 stars
David Geffen, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Steven Spielberg
Gilda’s Club Chicago 3 stars
Gilda Radner
God’s Love We Deliver 3 stars
Joan Rivers
The Goodman Theatre 3 stars
Brian Dennehy
Green Dot Public Schools 3 stars
Oscar De La Hoya
Greenpeace Fund 3 stars
Bono
Habitat for Humanity International 3 stars
Jimmy Carter
Healthy Child Healthy World 3 stars
Amy Brenneman, Laura Dern, Meryl Streep, Olivia Newton-John
The Hole in the Wall Gang Fund 3 stars
Julia Roberts, Paul Newman
Horizons National 3 stars
Brian Williams
Human Rights First 3 stars
Sigourney Weaver
Hunter’s Hope Foundation 3 stars
Jim Kelly
In Defense of Animals 3 stars
Elaine Hendrix
International OCD Foundation 3 stars
Elizabeth McIngvale, Jeff Bell
International Tennis Hall of Fame 3 stars
Jim Courier, Pam Shriver, Patrick McEnroe
Jazz at Lincoln Center 3 stars
Michael Bloomberg, Wynton Marsalis
Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation 3 stars
Joe Torre
John F. Kennedy Library Foundation 3 stars
Caroline Kennedy
Joslin Diabetes Center 3 stars
Ray Allen
KICKSTART 3 stars
Chuck Norris
Literacy Partners 3 stars
Liz Smith
Make-A-Wish America 3 stars
Chris Webber, Grant Hill, Jimmie Johnson, Kevin Donnalley, Michael Johnson
Marine Toys for Tots Foundation 3 stars
Bob Hope, Michelle Obama, Ronald Reagan
Mitchell Institute 3 stars
George J. Mitchell
The Museum of Modern Art 3 stars
Michael Bloomberg
Museum of the City of New York 3 stars
Michael Bloomberg
My Stuff Bags Foundation 3 stars
Michael Reagan
NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund 3 stars
Thurgood Marshall
National Constitution Center 3 stars
Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, Sandra Day O’Connor
National Inclusion Project 3 stars
Clay Aiken
National Women’s History Museum 3 stars
Meryl Streep
The Nature Conservancy 3 stars
Michael Douglas
New York City Ballet 3 stars
Michael Bloomberg
New York City Center 3 stars
Joanne Woodward
Operation USA 3 stars
Julie Andrews
The Paley Center for Media 3 stars
Kim Cattrall
Positive Coaching Alliance 3 stars
Barry Zito, Bart Conner, Bill Bradley, Dean Smith, Doc Rivers, Dot Richardson, Herm Edwards, Kerri Strug, Larry Brown, Nadia Comaneci, Phil Jackson, Ronnie Lott, Summer Sanders, Tony Dorsett
Pro Kids Golf Academy 3 stars
Ernest H. Wright, Sr.
The Public Theater/New York Shakespeare Festival 3 stars
Jimmy Smits, Kevin Kline, Liev Schrieber, Michael Bloomberg, Morgan Freeman, Nora Ephron, Sam Waterson
Race to Erase MS 3 stars
Avril Lavigne, Tom Arnold, Tommy Hilfiger
Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network 3 stars
Christina Ricci
Riverkeeper 3 stars
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Room to Grow 3 stars
Uma Thurman
Santa Barbara Zoo 3 stars
John Cleese
Several Sources Shelters 3 stars
Stephen Baldwin
SOS Children’s Villages-USA 3 stars
Sarah Ferguson
Spirit of America 3 stars
George P. Shultz
Statue of Liberty-Ellis Island Foundation 3 stars
Lee Iacocca
Symphony Space 3 stars
Alec Baldwin, Cynthia Nixon, Stephen Colbert, William Hurt
Tiger Woods Foundation 3 stars
Tiger Woods
Tom Coughlin Jay Fund Foundation 3 stars
Tom Coughlin
Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance 3 stars
Julianne Moore
United States Fund for UNICEF 3 stars
Alyssa Milano, Clay Aiken, India.Arie , Laurence Fishburne, Lucy Liu, Sarah Jessica Parker, Téa Leoni
USA Cares 3 stars
Dennis Miller
USA for UNHCR 3 stars
Angelina Jolie
Victory Junction Gang 3 stars
Kyle Petty
William J. Clinton Foundation 3 stars
Bill Clinton
WITNESS 3 stars
Peter Gabriel
Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts 3 stars
Michelle Obama, Tony Bennett, Trisha Yearwood
Women for Women International 3 stars
Rania Al-Abdullah
World Society for the Protection of Animals 3 stars
Audrey Landers, Simon Cowell, Tiffani Thiessen
Youth For Tomorrow 3 stars
Joe Gibbs
All Stars Helping Kids 2 stars
Emmitt Smith, Kristi Yamaguchi, Marcus Allen, Ronnie Lott
American Cinematheque 2 stars
Candice Bergen, Francis Coppola, Goldie Hawn, Martin Scorsese
American Friends of the Yitzhak Rabin Center for the Study of Israel 2 stars
Henry Kissinger, Madeleine Albright
Amnesty International USA 2 stars
Bono , Nazanin Boniadi, Nicolas Cage
Apollo Theater Foundation 2 stars
Quincy Jones
CJ Foundation for SIDS 2 stars
Don Imus
Country Music Foundation 2 stars
Taylor Swift
The Gorilla Foundation 2 stars
Betty White
Helen Woodward Animal Center 2 stars
Diane Keaton
International Campaign for Tibet 2 stars
Richard Gere
John Tracy Clinic 2 stars
Robert Wagner
Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International 2 stars
Mary Tyler Moore, Nick Jonas, Sugar Ray Leonard
Last Chance for Animals 2 stars
Chris DeRose
Los Angeles Opera 2 stars
Placido Domingo
March of Dimes 2 stars
Denny Hamlin, Jennifer Lopez, Kelly Clarkson, Nicole Kidman, Sherri Shepherd
Muscular Dystrophy Association 2 stars
Jerry Lewis
National Coalition Against Censorship 2 stars
Judy Blume
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals 2 stars
Alec Baldwin, Alicia Silverstone, Pamela Anderson, Pink , Woody Harrelson
The Roar Foundation 2 stars
Antonio Banderas, Betty White, Bo Derek, Loni Anderson, Melanie Griffith, Tippi Hedren
Save the Manatee Club 2 stars
Jimmy Buffett
Seeds of Peace 2 stars
Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, Queen Noor Al-Hussein
Southeastern Legal Foundation 2 stars
Edwin Meese
Steadman Hawkins Research Foundation 2 stars
H.M. King Juan Carlos I of Spain
The Climate Reality Project 2 stars
Al Gore
Waterkeeper Alliance 2 stars
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Women’s Sports Foundation 2 stars
Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Dominique Dawes, Geena Davis, Holly Hunter, Laila Ali, Martina Navratilova, Mia Hamm, Sheryl Crow
Alonzo Mourning Charities 1 stars
Alonzo Mourning
American Diabetes Association 1 stars
Donovan McNabb, Elliott Yamin, Gladys Knight, Greg LeMond, Joan Allen, Lovie Smith, Tony Dungy
American Tinnitus Association 1 stars
William Shatner
Andre Agassi Foundation for Education 1 stars
Andre Agassi, Emeril Lagasse, Sir Elton John
George Bush Presidential Library Foundation 1 stars
Andrew H. Card, Jr., Jeb Bush
The Imus Ranch 1 stars
Don Imus
The Larry King Cardiac Foundation 1 stars
Larry King
Marijuana Policy Project Foundation 1 stars
Adam Carolla, Bill Maher, Jack Black, Jesse Ventura
MASS MoCA 1 stars
Meryl Streep
Miracle Flights for Kids 1 stars
Bruce Jenner, Wayne Newton
National Council of Negro Women 1 stars
Maya Angelou
Teachers Without Borders 1 stars
Jane Goodall
Teammates for Kids Foundation 1 stars
Garth Brooks
VH1 Save The Music Foundation 1 stars
Wynton Marsalis
California Police Youth Charities 0 stars
Brande Roderick
Operation Lookout 0 stars
Dyan Cannon