Damian Lewis is the proud patron of two charities, Cure EB and Sir Hubert von Herkomer Arts Foundation (HvH Arts). In the photo above, you see him with two formidable ladies: On the left is Debbi Clark, the founder and CEO of Sir HvH Arts, and on the right is Sharmila Collins, the founder and CEO of Cure EB. And Damian making time for these charities, attending their events and working to raise funds for them is always a TOP MOMENT of the year!
Cure EB
The kids that are born with Recessive Dystropic Epidermolysis Bullosa (RDEB) or EB for short lack the protein that holds their skin together. They have extremely fragile skin that they are sometimes called “butterfly children.” Lots of activities we take for granted as easy routines in our daily lives are a struggle for them. Can you imagine a day where your dressing up takes up to two hours and eating and drinking cause blisters in your mouth and throat? These kids have to deal with this kind of pain every single day. Besides, they are under extra risk to develop skin cancer later in life and their life expectancy is not very long.
Sharmila and James Collins are the two heroes behind Cure EB (formerly Sohana Research Fund) – a fund to raise awareness as well as money for research to ultimately have a cure for this terrible skin condition. The couple founded Cure EB because their daughter Sohana was born with this condition. Here is what Sohana, a college student, says about EB.
Damian’s involvement with Cure EB goes back a decade or so and it is way more than an endorsement. He has actively participated in the Fund’s campaigns to raise awareness and funds for EB research. And this year was no different.
Damian hosted the foundation’s biannual Silver Butterfly dinner this year. The dinner is organized to raise funds for Cure EB through a live auction for people in the room and a silent auction for people in front of their screens who are able to bid for an amazing array of prizes. Damian also volunteered his time for Cure EB – the live auction included a bid for high tea at the Ritz London with our guy! 🙂
And he was again on the trading floor this year on BGC Charity Day to raise money for Cure EB that would fund the on-going research projects to find a cure for this terrible skin condition.
Damian also kept supporting Cure EB’s fabulous campaign ‘Coffee to Cure EB‘.
So why don’t you do like Damian and donate a coffee to help find a cure for this horrible skin condition? And if you are not a coffee person, and I confess that I am not, you can always give up on one day’s tea, smoothie and what have you. Cure EB has a menu for you to choose from!
Please note that donation via text only applies to UK residents. If you live in another country and want to donate your favorite beverage to Cure EB, you can always donate on Cure EB website here. I have been giving to Cure EB for almost a decade now and I vouch for the donation process as quick and secure.
And please SPREAD THE WORD! Check out Cure EB website for more information. Follow them on Twitter , Instagram and Facebook. Please SHARE the information. And please HELP so we can beat Epidermolysis Bullosa, a disease “Hard to say, Hell to Live with!” together.
All the young people living with EB want is a cure. Let’s give them the strength to fly! Thank you <3
HvH Arts
Helen McCrory was the patron of Sir Hubert Von Herkomer Arts Foundation (HvH Arts in short) a charity that is dedicated to ensuring every child is given a chance to connect with art when funding for the arts is squeezed out of the mainstream curriculum at schools.
A huge believer in that every child should have access to arts, Helen championed the charity starting on day one when it was founded in 2013. We saw her and Damian attending HvH Arts Student Exhibitions and chat with students about their art as well as working the phones on the trading floor to raise funds for the foundation over the years.
After Helen passed away in 2021, Damian kindly asked us to add HvH Arts to his charities on his fan site because he would now take over as the patron of HvH Arts. The family also kindly asked donations in memory of Helen be made to HvH Arts. And Debbi Clark, the CEO of Sir HvH Arts Foundation and Helen’s close friend, penned a tribute for her “beautiful one” and announced the ‘McCrory Award.’
“The ‘McCrory Award’ will be dedicated to supporting disadvantaged children and young people who are gifted in their art, yet many do not have access to the resources, the training, the income to support them fulfill their dream. The ‘McCrory Award’ will make their dreams become a reality.”
The McCrory Award Private Exhibition and Awards Ceremony is obviously the most special night of the HvH Arts’ calendar. Damian hosted the evening at the Alon Zakaim Fine Arts gallery in London, showcasing exclusive photography pieces and black and white sketches of Helen McCrory and other celebrities to support the Sir HvH Arts Foundation and to honor The McCrory Award. I was very lucky to be in the room!
In his speech at the event, and he is such a good speaker, it is a gift, Damian told us about HvH Arts. We found out that Hubert von Herkomer after whose name the Foundation was named was Debbi’s husband Mark’s great great grandfather. He was a polymath artist. He was a portrait painter, a pioneer filmmaker, a composer, he worked in textiles, ceramic, and pottery. He loved art so much that he opened a school in Bushy that survived for about 20-30 years. He encouraged everyone in North London to come and fulfill their promise as young artists. And this is exactly what Debbi, “this pocket rocket” in Damian’s words, and her husband Mark totally galvanized this charity and gave an opportunity to underprivileged young people in Kentish Town and Camden to find their inner artist. Damian also talked about how much Helen loved and supported Debbi and cracked everyone up by saying “Helen knew a good thing when she saw it” You can watch Damian’s speech and the award ceremony below.
And then there was cake! Here you go: this year’s award recipients, left to right, Emiola Oke, Ondine Farlam, and Danny English cutting the cake with HvH Arts Ambassaddor Sadie Frost, CEO Debbi Clark and Patron Damian Lewis. And I love it that Helen is in the background. I’m sure she is so proud.
And to show you the seriousness of the training the HvH Arts gives its young people, here is a glimpse into the beautiful art pieces that these young artists created. I was very lucky to see them up close and talk to some of the young artists at the event.
I noticed earlier that HvH Arts CEO and founder, but also its current patron, and some of their die-hard supporters were Aquarians. Now, being an Aquarian is a serious business. I am an Aquarian. And I always claim I was born a month early (this is true!) just to become an Aquarian! So it was my pleasure to gave these t-shirts to some of the exceptional human beings at the event!
BECAUSE WE DO!
Damian was also there for HvH Arts on BGC Charity Day in September to raise funds for the Foundation.
Damian talked to the PA News Agency about the charity in 2022:
“I love the idea of trading, I would be terrible at it in real life. These guys are honestly on the edge all the time … fingers hovering over buttons ready to make the trade but they are all brilliant. This day is obviously special after what happened on 9/11 and it’s a brilliant initiative. I am glad to come back. If I am in town I always do this day, I really enjoy it and I do it for HvH Arts, which is a brilliant little charity that Debbi runs and Cure EB, two very different things we’re trying to help out and very happy to be here. Helen was patron and I have taken over as patron because I wanted to continue to help.”
Please spread the word about HvH Arts! Visit HvH Arts website for more information. Follow them on Twitter and Instagram. Please SHARE the information. And please donate if you can so young people from underprivileged communities can have a chance to fulfill their potential in the arts. Thank you.
