CANNES WATCH: Celebs, docs mix for charity gala

The Associated Press

CANNES, France (AP) — Josh Charles and Rosario Dawson were among the luminaries at the annual Heart Fund Charity Ball, but the real VIPs may have been the doctors.

Cardiologists mixed with celebrities at Wednesday’s event, designed to raise funds and awareness for Heart Fund, which is dedicated to providing heart care to impoverished children around the world. Heart surgeons donate their services to perform operations for some of the neediest children.

Dr. David Luu, who started the organization, said it comes to the Cannes Film Festival each year to have stars shine a light on the work they do.

“It’s not all about the celebrities, it’s more than that,” he said at the event. “We have surgeon skills in our hand, but we don’t have the voices. We need the voice, we need a speaker, and we think cinema is one of the most important media to broadcast messages.”

The evening’s entertainment included actor Gary Dourdan, who performed songs on acoustic guitar. But the highlight of the evening came when Jack Penrod, the founder of Nikki Beach Worldwide with beach clubs, restaurants and hotels, and his wife Lucia donated 100,000 euros to the organization so it can purchase a “Heart Bus,” a mobile hospital to screen and treat needy children.

— By Nekesa Mumbi Moody, http://www.twitter.com/nekesamumbi

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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