Justin Bieber’s 20 Acts
of Kindness
“With
great power comes great responsibility,” or so says Uncle Ben in Spider-Man.
It
may just be a quote from a superhero movie, but we can’t think of any other
young star who has tried their best to inspire change like Justin Bieber has.
Since
rocketing to international stardom when he was 16, the now 20-year-old singing
sensation from Stratford, Ont. has done more than his share of charity work.
From raising millions to help typhoon victims in the Philippines to taking some
time out of his busy day to visit an injured fan, he never fails to show his
Beliebers that a little act of kindness can do a long way.
In
honour of Justin Bieber’s 20th birthday, we compiled a list of just 20 amazing
acts of kindness he’s performed over the years!
Give Back Philippines:
After
the horrible Typhoon Haiyan disaster, Justin launched an online campaign #GiveBackPhilippines, to raise money for Yolanda survivors.
With the help of beliebers, over $3 million was raised in an effort to give
child survivors access to education, vaccinations, clean water and sanitation.
Justin not only performed a special small concert that day, but played
basketball, danced, and interacted with many kids. Justin is also the first
international artist awarded with a star on the Walk of Fame Philippines.
Bieber said: “I have long been a fan of UNICEF’s work, and it is my privilege
to be able to support the organization as they respond to the needs of all who
have been affected by Typhoon Haiyan, now and into the future.”
Building
schools in Guatemala with PoP:
In
October 2013, Justin travelled to Guatemala with Pencils
of Promise to help build
schools. Between getting his hands dirty from laying down bricks to playing
around with the local children, his smile was something that could not be
forced. Following his trip, Bieber said: “It isn’t about me, it’s about the
kids, plain and simple. I’m sharing this story in hopes that the world will
help me end the education crisis.”
Private
performance for injured fan:
After
hearing the news that a belieber named Kate O’Neill was involved in serious car
accident just weeks before his upcoming Australian tour dates, Justin and his
team decided to literally bring the show to her. Kate, surrounded by close
family and friends, was serenaded during an intimate acoustic performance that
I’m sure she will never forget!
Bieber
Claus:
During
a special pre-screening of Believe,
Justin surprised a room full of lucky beliebers who were apart of the Boys and
Girls Club. He invited each of the kids on stage where they not only got to
meet him (and get lovable hugs), but also received a toy just in time for the
holidays. Bieber told the crowd: “I remember growing up with not a lot. I wanna
make sure each and every one of you has a great Christmas.”
Make-A-Wish
Record Holder:
Justin
Bieber has granted over 200 wishes via Make-A-Wish, breaking the foundation’s
record to become the first ever recording artist to do so. During many of these
visits, Bieber requested that have no cameras present to make the experience
that much better for the kids. You can pretty much call him our modern day
hero.
‘Shots
of Me’ app to stop bullying:
If
it isn’t already obvious that Justin is the King of selfies, he teamed up with
RockLive to launch the selfie sharing app, Shots of Me. Bieber reportedly
wanted a social network where people couldn’t comment directly on photos to
leave hateful messages. If you want to follow him on there, he goes by the name
@bizzle.
Donated
his trademark locks:
How
could you forget the infamous hair flip? Of course all good things come to an
end, and JB decided to get himself a new ‘do. During an appearance on The Ellen Show, Justin presented
Ellen a lock of his newly snipped hair in a signed glass box. “There’s a perk.
I wanted to do something good. I’m giving pieces of it to different people. The
thing is, we’re doing something special. We want you to donate it to whatever
charity you want.” Ellen’s item sold for a whopping $40, 668 on eBay!
Children’s
Wish:
Justin
generously donated a significant amount of money to the Children’s Wish
Foundation of Canada as part of his Believe Charity Drive. Before his intimate
acoustic and later televised performance “Home For The Holidays” at Massey Hall
in Toronto, he spent time backstage with children who were dealing with
life-threatening illnesses.
Grammy
Foundation Advice:
Justin
visited Grammy Foundation’s Grammy Camp where high school and college students
were given the opportunity to experience a live soundcheck and Q&A session
in Memphis. Justin had some inspirational advice for those in attendance. Dream
big.
Schools4All
Movement:
Justin
teamed up with Adam Braun, founder of Pencils of Promise, to help campaign and
build schools for kids in need. Middle and high school students in the US
teamed up and made their own fundraising pages, in support of raising funds to
educate children around the world. Money raised during the campaign went to
PoP’s programs in Ghana, Guatemala, Laos and Nicaragua. With every $25 that a
school raised, they received a chance to win a special school visit from Justin
Bieber himself!
Ticket
sale donations:
With
every ticket sold on the My World and Believe Tour, $1 was donated to
charity. After hearing about Hurricane Sandy slamming across the east coast,
leaving thousands of people without a home, Justin decided to specifically
donate $1 from each ticket from four New York-area shows, to the Hurricane
Sandy Disaster Relief. This isn’t the first time Justin donated to those
affected by a natural disaster. In 2010, Justin donated ticket sales totalling
$32,690 from the Bridgestone Arena to support The Community Foundation of
Middle Tennessee for Flood Relief.
Birthdays
supporting Charity Water:
When
you’re Justin Bieber, what more could you wish for when you probably have
everything you already want? In celebration of his 17th and 18th birthday,
family, friends, and beliebers donated money to Charity
Water, a non-profit that
brings potable drinking water to people in developing countries. He wrote, “I
really want my birthday to be all about helping others.” $66,740 was raised in
combination for both days!
Making
history with music:
Justin
is the the first artist on the Universal Music roster to have part of his album
sales benefit charity. “Under The Mistletoe” was Bieber’s third No. 1 album and it was the first
Christmas album by a male artist to debut at No. 1.
Don’t
text and drive:
The
Brown family appeared on Extreme
Makeover: Home Edition in 2011, after loosing their eldest daughter Alex
who was involved in a texting while driving accident. Justin Bieber was a
special guest during this episode and helped spread the word about the dangers
of texting and driving. To date, over 350,000 people have taken the pledge
to remember Alex Brown and not to text while operating a motor
vehicle. Younger sister Katrina was given the opportunity to hang out with
Justin during soundcheck and was even given tickets to his Never Say Never premiere in Los
Angeles.
Smell
good and give back doing so:
Justin’s
first female fragrance Someday
broke records, selling $3 million in just three weeks at Macys. The then
18-year-old was named the 2012 Elizabeth Taylor Fragrance Celebrity of the
Year Award at the 40th FiFi Awards. Proceeds from Justin’s fragrances have
been donated to charities including some of his favourites, Pencils of Promise,
and the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Bieber said in a statement: “The
best part is that my favourite charities are sharing in the success; it is
important to pay it forward. Plus, I have the girls smelling great!” With all
the success, there’s been another two fragrances since then that you should get
your hands on: Girlfriend &
The Key.
Donated
to underprivileged school:
Justin
donated $100,000 to Whitney Elementary in Las Vegas where he later performed a
special holiday concert. Principal Sherrie Gahn’s selfless drive to go
above and beyond for her 600 students inspired many, and even garnering the
attention of Ellen DeGeneres, Justin Bieber and thousands who wanted to
help. A year later, Bieber returned to Whitney Elementary where he pledged
to fill the school’s food pantry over the next year. Justin also teamed up
with ConAgra Foods to fill up food banks in all of North America, something
close to his heart. Gahn said: “Justin Bieber coming means a lot.
These kids get to see someone who’s really important to them, believes in
them.”
Don’t
be a bystander:
There’s
no question that there’s a whole pack of haters trailing behind Justin’s every
move, for some reasons most will never know. After seeing a video that
went viral of Casey Heynes standing up to a school bully, Justin wanted to meet
him. Justin ended up bringing Casey on stage in Melbourne during “Never
Say Never” and gave him and his family the ultimate VIP treatment. Then in
2012, during an anti-cyberbullying PSA , Bieber said: “The Internet can be used
as a place to have a greater positive impact on the world. There’s a ton of
positive initiatives online. The web should be used to inspire others; not
spread hate or to hurt.”
WeTopia,
play for good:
You
can simply help others by playing in the virtual world of WeTopia on Facebook.
Users can earn “joy” which then can be spent on real charitable projects
benefitting Save The Children, buildOn, and Children’s Health Fund. Justin said
in a press release: “Playing online games is a lot of fun already, but WeTopia
makes it better by helping children around the world.”
Never
forget where you come from:
Justin
donated $10,000 to a local food bank in Stratford, Ontario. Access Hollywood host Billy Bush made
a deal with Justin, saying he would also donate $5,000 to the charity of
Bieber’s choice with one condition — for Justin to send out a tweet to his followers to follow Bush: “With
@billybush doing an interview follow him hes a good guy!” Co-ordinator of
the Stratford House of Blessing, Laura Davies said, ”It’s
really exciting to hear Justin’s thinking of Stratford again.”
Mrs.
Bieber:
There
wasn’t a more ray of sunshine than six-year-old Avalanna Routh, who was living
life to the fullest while battling a rare brain disease. After hearing about
her fake Bieber wedding, Justin and his manager Scooter Braun flew Avalanna and
her family to NYC from Boston for a special meeting. The two hit it off for
hours and developed a bond like no other. During Justin’s show at the Apollo
Theater, Avalanna was his lucky OLLG. Sadly in Sept. 2012, Avalanna passed and
Justin payed tribute to the little girl with a photo montage during OLLG on the
first date of the Believe Tour. It was truly a heartwarming performance and
these moments were documented in Bieber’s latest movie, Believe.
