Beyoncé Knowles is a fashion icon, musical genius and world-class performer.  Going beyond the world of pop-culture, Beyoncé and her husband Jay-Z work closely with many philanthropy organizations.

Beyoncé partnered with Kelly Rowland to found the Survivor Foundation after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.  The organization provided transitional housing for those affected in the Houston area.  Within five years the organization has provided more than $2.5 million dollars to housing projects like Habitat for Humanity, Temenos Place, and the Knowles-Rowland Community Outreach Center.  The foundation has expanded to work out of other U.S. cities affected by natural disasters.

Beyoncé has also contributed her talents to many benefit concerts such as Hope for Haiti Now, World Humanitarian Day by the UN, World Children’s Day, and Chime for Change, a group advocating women’s rights.  In 2010, Beyoncé partnered with Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! campaign to end childhood obesity. A strong partner with Stand Up to Cancer, Beyoncé recorded a single for the cause with Leann Rimes and Mary J Blige.

Beyoncé uses her role as a music and style icon to act as the face for CFDA’s Fashion for Haiti campaign and the co-founder of the Cosmetology Center at Brooklyn’s Phoenix House, a drug rehabilitation center.  In 2008, the music icon took philanthropy to another level when she donated all of the proceeds from her Cadillac Records deal to the Phoenix House. The star also supports the food donation charity, Miss-a-Meal, and the Goodwill foundation among others.

When Beyoncé and Jay-Z had their baby, Blue Ivy Carter, the couple chose to donate her baby gifts to charity.  Most of the gifts have gone to young mothers and their children.  “Reaching out and touching lives is incredibly empowering,” says Beyoncé, “that’s why I want my fans to experience the joy of making a difference by helping someone else.”

– Stephanie Lamm

Sources: Huffington Post, Seventeen, Look to the Stars, Microgiving Blog
Photo: Giphy.com