Audrey Hepburn

Audrey in Africa giving a young girl to her mother (eurolade.wordpress.com ())

Audrey Hepburn became the ambassador of UNICEF in 1988 for helping famished children and adults throughout the world.  Hepburn began working with UNICEF as she did not want to see innocent families suffering, as she did as a child.  "The slender Audrey became malnourished as food became scarce. She developed anemia and swelling of the legs" (Flonder, para. 13).  As Hepburn became more sick as a young child, her father left her family to starve as then it was only her and her mother.  Her and her mother eventually found their way out of the situation where she soon after began acting. She used her name to help others in need as UNICEF became her goal.  Audrey went through some extremely traumatic experiences throughout her life which inspired her to help others who went through similar or even worse struggles.  

Audrey is a holding a young, weak, starving, child (www.audreyhepburn.com ())

Some of the field trips Audrey Hepburn took, truly shocked her in ways that she would never again forget.  As Audrey visited many different countries, she saw so many famished people,  "She spent the last years of her life devoted to children in third world countries, serving as Ambassador for UNICEF in several third world countries, including Somalia, Bangladesh, Ethiopia and the Sudan" (Wilson, para. 3). Audrey Hepburn cared deeply about malnourished children as she wanted them to stay healthy and survive.  Hepburn felt it was an honor to speak for children as they could not speak for themselves.  "UNICEF is committed to these children; our mission is to bring their condition to the world's attention. We are determined not to forget about them, not to let them disappear into abstract political discourse. By bringing them to life in words, our hope is to keep them alive in reality" - Audrey Hepburn.  She wanted to improve the lives of the needy, and make the world aware of this difficult situation.  Audrey could not bear seeing people starving and hurt and she would do anything to make their lives better.  Audrey Hepburn looked out for others before she looked out for herself.  Hepburn hoped and dreamed to see those in need being helped and gaining a better future.

When Hepburn decided she wanted to help others in need, she was introduced to UNICEF where she later became their ambassador.  Audrey never dropped the opportunity of helping one another.  "She always said that she felt she owed her life to the United Nations relief organizations, as it was the UNRRA (United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration) that saved her from complete starvation during her youth in war-torn Holland" (Wilson, para. 3).

Audrey experienced difficult times as a child. She felt no child should go through the struggles she went through. This inspired her to help others in need. Hepburn's main goal was not acting, but helping others.  "Audrey represented the agency in many capacities, not only appearing at public occasions to support the good cause of UNICEF but also traveling widely to the world's trouble spots to assess the situation of children" (Audrey 1, para. 2).  Audrey did not join the UNICEF for fame and publicity, she joined to help people and try to save their lives.  Audrey Hepburn saved her own life which gave her the inspiration to help others who have shared her difficult experiences.  

Audrey Hepburn was so thankful that her career allowed her to work with UNICEF and save the lives of innocent people. "...her first field mission was to Ethiopia, where she was intensely scarred by what she saw" (Wilson, para. 6).  As Audrey was going on missions to try to save young children and their parents, she was shocked by what she saw. She did not expect to see as much malnourishment as she did but was prepared from her own experiences.  "Her formative years were in German-occupied Holland, where she watched Nazi soldiers haul Jews to trains that unbeknownst at the time to locals, took them to the concentration camps; she witnessed hunger in the streets and experienced it herself..." (Kaye, para. 3). After working with UNICEF for several years, she was given the title as their ambassador as she was so devoted to changing somebody elses life.  Audrey Hepburn inspires so many people to help in their communities as she did around the world.

Audrey tries to help a fragile boy eat (satanslifecoach.tumblr.com ())

Works Cited

Flonder, Polly. "The Immortal Audrey Hepburn." Biography 2.8 (1998): 46. Biography

Reference Center. Web. 24 Mar. 2015.

Wilson, Kim. "BACKLOTS." The Humanitarian Legacy of Audrey Hepburn. N.p., 6 May 2012. Web. 25 Mar.  2015

http://backlots.net/2012/05/05/the-humanitarian-legacy-of-audrey-hepburn/

"Audrey 1." Audrey Hepburn Work for UNICEF. N.p., 1998-2015. Web. 25 Mar. 2015.

  http://www.audrey1.org/

Kaye, Leon. "Green Go Post." Remembering Audrey Hepburn's UNICEF Work. N.p., 10 Nov. 2010. Web. 25 Mar. 2015.

http://greengopost.com/remembering-audrey-hepburn-unicef-work/