Sean Penn and Celebrity Friends Raise Millions for Haiti

The eve of the fourth anniversary of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, Sean Penn’s friends came out to support his Haitian relief organization’s 3rd annual Help Haiti Home gala. Stars like Goldie Hawn, Julia Roberts, Gwyneth Paltrow and Penn’s new girlfriend, Charlize Theron, helped him raise six million dollars in a single evening.

Since Penn’s charity, J/P Haitian Relief Organization, began managing two tent camps which housed 60,000 people displaced by the quake, it has provided support for every family to be relocated, and built earthquake-resistant housing for hundreds. The group also provides health and education services.

The J/P HRO Engineering and Construction team continues to demolish and clear debris today and has already removed 1.3 million tons of rubble. The team’s new strategy is to teach the people how to build safely, according to a report in Variety.

One of the fundraising vehicles for the January 11 gala was an auction for which pop artist Banksy created a painting that went home with Chris Martin of Coldplay, thanks to his generous bid. The biggest bid of the night came from CNN newsman Anderson Cooper, who paid $1.4 million for a sculpture to be made from discarded firearms owned by Penn, according to the SF Chronicle.

To top off the party in Beverly Hills, Bono performed with U2, after not having played together in four years.

For more information go to: www.jphro.org, follow the group on Twitter, add J/P HRO to your Google+ circles, and find them on Facebook.