** Warning: There’s some grim photos at the end and you might not want to be eating while reading this **
We
all remember Audrey as the cutesy call girl in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.
The iconic photo of her standing in front of the window at Tiffany’s
became a staple of the 1960′s
But did you know she fought against the Nazi’s in WWII? She helped raise MONEY
for the Dutch resistance and hid messages in her shoes. True story. She also won every award possible; including an Oscar, a Tony, an Emmy, a Grammy, and a Golden Globe
And graced every magazine cover imaginable
She
could’ve been a NYC socialite – living in a penthouse, attending galas
every night, and drinking fine wine. Audrey had the world on a string…
Photo by Pierluigi Praturlon
But she didn’t want to do that…
Instead
she joined UNICEF and from 1988 to 1992 she traveled to the worlds
poorest countries. Her first stop was in Ethiopia where she visited the
orphanages of starving children
“I
have a broken heart. I feel desperate. I can’t stand the idea that two
million people are in imminent danger of starving to death, many of them
children…”
Then she went on an immunization campaign in Turkey
Then South America: Venezuela and Ecuador
Then Central America: Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala
Went to Sudan for “Operation Lifeline” where she helped ferry food to people during civil war.
How about Bangladesh? Yup.
“Often
the kids would have flies all over them, but she would just go hug
them. I had never seen that. Other people had a certain amount of
hesitation, but she would just grab them. Children would just come up to
hold her hand, touch her – she was like the Pied Piper.” – UN Photographer
I wish I knew what was so funny…
Another immunization, this time in Vietnam? Yup.
And in 1992, four months before she died of appendiceal cancer, Audrey went to Somalia
“I
walked into a nightmare. I have seen famine in Ethiopia and Bangladesh,
but I have seen nothing like this – so much worse than I could possibly
have imagined. I wasn’t prepared for this.”
September 1992, Audrey Hepburn in Somalia. © Robert Wolders
September 1992. Somalia. © Robert Wolders

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