Yesterday was Giving Tuesday, a now five year-old tradition where people give to their charities of choice on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. I gave to a few organizations who may be particularly hurting under the Trump administration (check out John Oliver’s list of charities for ideas) and I gave in my family members’ names as the donations can make nice gifts. We’re all still kind of shell shocked and instead of buying stuff we’re trying to figure out what to do next, and there are already groups on the ground doing the hard work. That’s how I try to make a difference as a single mom without much time to spare but other people put their time and effort into working for charity and that’s admirable. Kristen Bell has always emphasized giving back to others and viewing everyone with kindness. While she was doing workfor an organization out of LA assisting the homeless called P.A.T.H, Bell spoke with E! about her charity work and philosophy. I know this post isn’t going to get a lot of interest, but please consider this – how great would it be if more celebrities promoted their charities of choice rather than the products and projects they’re usually hawking?
Kristen Bell has passionately volunteered her time with P.A.T.H (People Assisting The Homeless) for the last few years and opened up to E! News exclusively in an interview.
“It was right after I had kids, and it really hit me because I had just had a baby, and I was sort of floating around this idea that everybody is someone else’s baby…I would want others who are capable and had the ability to reach out a helping hand, and my mom always taught me that you have two hands for a reason, one hand is for you and one is for some giving,” the Good Place star shared with us while at P.A.T.H in Hollywood.
P.A.T.H is a nonprofit whose mission is to end homelessness for individuals, families, and communities. They’ve been around for over 30 years, and in just the last three years they’ve helped more than 6,500 people in California find permanent homes. Kristen has helped move in many families with P.A.T.H and explains, “It’s really important not to stay in our bubble, and we need to see all walks of life and all types of people and hear their stories and learn how we can work together.”
She added, “because it’s really just team human you know what I mean?”
Yes. And in working together, hopefully we can see our homeless population rate lower.
One way you can get involved with P.A.T.H is participating in what Kristen calls an “invisible feast,” an event she has co-chaired for the last couple of years.“It’s an event we have here at P.A.T.H in the fall where we say we’re not going to make you come to an event, get dressed up and feed you a rubber chicken—just whatever you would have spent on a night out with your family…$40, $70, whatever it is, donate it, and we will make sure 100% of the proceeds go to helping people find a permanent home.”
E! also has the video of Bell’s quick interview with them which you can see on their site. Bell is very type A and she can be annoying, but she’s also someone who cares and feels things deeply. It would be easy for her to just sit back, do movies and sell products (to be fair she does that too) but she’s also putting work into helping others and into talking about that with the press. Yes some celebrities do that for publicity, but it’s so much easier for them to post bikini selfies or stage beefs with people if they want attention. It’s not like doing charity work is easy by any means. In most cases, like Bell, it comes out of a genuine desire to help people and to spread the word about it. We’ll oblige.
And here she is promoting stuff. Those mouths though.
And she cross promotes her movies with her charity work. But the charities are getting publicity too so win-win?
photos credit: WENN and Instagram/Kristen Bell
I know a lot of women who are fixated on their appearance, on their “wellness”, on their minimalist, picture perfect homes and yet despite having so much they seem so unhappy. I often think that maybe doing something selfless for others might be the first step to filling the hole they have inside.
My family was raised to do whatever you can for others, whenever you can and it’s a part of who I am that I can feel really good about.
Well, I’ll leave an interested comment because I agree with you, Celebitchy.
I do my voluntary work as governor of a local school. But it’s amazing how doing anything voluntary shunts you out of your own personal bubble and makes you more aware of all sorts of things – you meet other people making an effort in a different arena and they tell you about what they’re doing, and then another and then another. It’s like a domino topple of awareness even though you’re still only doing that one thing you were doing in the first place. You just know more.
Also, it’s brilliant for self esteem. It makes you feel good.
Good for Kristen Bell.
Soooo true Sixer. For awhile when I was switching over to freelance in the baby industry and moved away from my advertising/communications steady career I really started to feel like I was existing in a place of financial scarcity, especially as a single mom.
I started volunteering more and more especially then, because it really helped me get out of my own kushy if slightly stressful life into these other worlds where the moment I got there I was completely existing for other people, and learning so much from so many people who devote so much of their lives to altruistic action.
I’ve been a community volunteer since middle school when I joined my churche’s youth group and what I loved so much about it was the outreach in the community, and really getting out there and making a difference.
When I ran the art program for the school district out here a huge part of the program was art outreach in inner city schools. Nothing is better, even in times of woe.
Yep. You receive as much, if not more, than you give, don’t you?
I have found out so much stuff and met so many cool people through the school but not really always anything to do with the school.
I started doing volunteering as a way to boost my CV, but it ended up meaning so much more, and you’re both so right, it really does feed the soul. I kind of thought I would hate giving away my time for free, but that isn’t how I feel now at all.
I picked a cause close to my heart, and it means more to me to help out with that than my job does.
It sounds strange to say out loud (semi-anonymously online), and highly cliche, but its something that gives meaning to my life – to give back what I can. I lived selfishly for a long time, and it also feels like a tiny bit of restitution for the bad energy I put out in the world.
She’s right. Charity should be part of life. Anyone can do acts of charity, volunteering costs nothing but a bit of time.
Heard she’s a b to fans tho
I have mixed feelings about the military and the military industrial complex. However I do feel the military was previously a significant integrator of classes. The idea that all serve, regardless of social status, still reigns in Israel afaik.
No longer the case in GB or the US obviously. It’s interesting to see how the dissolution of the draft has significantly affected class integration. Just a pet theory though, not sure if this is discussed in any scholarly works? Surely it must be.
I know McCain’s son served and the British royal family has military ties, but it still seems more and more like many (myself included) are out of touch with what it means to live outside of your class circle, in a myriad of big and small ways.
I donated to my local food bank in the wake of the US election, but I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to actually get my butt out there.
I’ve been a fan of hers for a long time, and everything I’ve ever heard or read points to her being a caring, giving person. I admire her for using her position to bring awareness to good causes, and for giving her time, energy, and money too.
This is not intended as a criticism of Bell, but I despise that American Express “Shop Small” campaign. Every small business I’ve worked for didn’t accept Amex because of the higher swipe fee. This isn’t just my anecdotal evidence, this is a trend across the board. Small businesses with small margins simply can’t afford to pay the higher percentage that Amex charges the vendor compared to Visa/MC. So this “Shop Small” campaign is actually Amex encouraging their cardholders to go out to the stores least likely to accept the card and present themselves as there to support small business owners in the name of Amex. They’re sending out their cardholders to passive-aggressively guilt small business owners! It’s positively sinister. Like, I think the commercials should have the voiceover warning that pharmaceutical ads contain about side effects explaining this practical reality.
Sorry. Side rant over. Except I guess it is a good example of how getting out of your bubble teaches you things about how the world is really working.
I just don’t care how you live your life, Bell. She seems like someone who would shush you in study hall or side eye you in the grocery store for being funny with your melons.
I really appreciate when celebrities make the effort to reflect the attention they get onto worthwhile causes, especially when the celebrity is showing a longer term commitment and a deeper involvement than showing up at a charity gala once a year.
By that standard, it seems like Kristen Bell is doing some good work and should be lauded for her efforts. I happen to know PATH as an organization and it’s a great group (in case anyone is looking for a group to donate your time or money).
Honk for Kristen.
Honk for Team Human.
And HONK for Invisible Feast! I LOVE that idea! Always bugged me that organizations would hold big fundraising bashes that would cost them hundreds of thousands, ending up raising maybe ten or at best twenty percent over their costs.
Honk Honk.