Audrey Hepburn - Contribution to the Dutch Resistance and Unicef

Audrey Hepburn

A hero, by definition, is a man or women of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his or her brave deeds and noble qualities. Heros come in many shapes and forms. A hero could be a fireman or someone who people idolize like a famous singer. Although Audrey Hepburn died many years ago, her legacy still lives on, not just through her movies, but through her contribution to the Dutch Resistance and her work for UNICEF.

Audrey Kathleen Van Heemstra Ruston was born in Brussels, Belgium May 4, 1929. Her father left their family when she was young to join the Nazi forces. Hepburn and her mother move to Nazi occupied Holland, and soon are at the head of the Dutch resistance. They made a huge impact, and after the war was over they moved to London where Hepburn pursued her interest in the ballet. Audrey Hepburn was in several plays before she was promoted to Broadway and eventually stared in movies. Pamela Fiori, in her article “Forever Audrey”, states, “Audrey was married twice to actor Mel Ferrer, then to Italian psychiatrist Dr. Andrea Dotti- and bore two sons, Sean Ferrer and Luca Dotti. Both marriages ended in divorce. While this was going on Hepburn was busy with her acting career. She was in over 20 movies and a few plays. Most were very successful. She put her career on the backburner, however, so she could focus her efforts on Charity work for UNICEF. She spent the rest of her days working for UNICEF. UNICEF stands for the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund. It was founded to provide food and emergency medical aid to children in countries devastated by the World War two. This appealed to Hepburn because it reminded her so much of her childhood and the people she grew up with. She became one the head coordinators for the organization, and went on many trips for the project herself. She later died of colon cancer on January 20, 1993.

Audrey Hepburn isn’t given enough credit for all she has done. Her efforts to help others in need are what make her a true hero. Not just her influence in the cinematic, and fashion worlds. One thing a lot of people don’t know about her is how much she did to aid the Dutch Resistance at a young age. Hepburn’s mother was a leader of the Resistance. “On the surface Hepburn accepted Nazi rule; secretly she helped raise funds for the resistance” (Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993) 231). Even though she was young and was almost always starving she had this need to help others. She couldn’t just stand by and do nothing. Having to watch her friends and neighbors be rounded up and taken away only made her want to help more. In his biography of Audrey Hepburn Martin Gitlin states, “. . . rather than people having typical conversations, people spoke in codes. . .” (Gitlin12). Hepburn would take coded messages and carry them in her socks to deliver to other supporters of the resistance. At one point Hepburn

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