Lady Gaga looked stunning as ever in an elegant fuchsia gown, this past Sunday, at the Walton-Laurie estate, but the singer-songwriter was not in attendance simply to make a grand entrance at a social soirée. Lady Gaga and her mother, Cynthia Germanotta, sat side-by-side and had a very important purpose for being in Bel Air, as reported June 11 by Billboard and the Hollywood Reporter.
Mother and daughter were being recognized by Children Mending Hearts with the Global Changemakers award for their work with the Born This Way Foundation. As always, through the honesty of her life, her music, or her words, Lady Gaga was about to use her time on this platform for a greater purpose.
Little things matter to young lives
Children Mending Hearts was founded by Lysa Heslov, an actress and producer of several independent films, including “Served like a Girl.” She is married to screenwriter, producer, and actor, Grant Heslov. The charity’s mission is to promote the development of empathy in youth through the arts.
Lady Gaga and her mother founded the Born This Way Foundation “to inspire youth and build better communities” per their mission statement, and becoming a “braver, kinder world” is the ultimate goal. The musician, her mother, and millions of followers spread seeds of kindness all over social media. Kindness and fun were in ample supply and evidence, as children covered the grounds, enjoying candy stations, face painting, and crafts, while parents were treated to some pampering with manicures and massages.
Lysa Heslov related the story of one Haitian boy, found through her foundation, who was living in a shelter in Brooklyn. His family had all been lost. Besides going to classes to connect with other youth and express his feelings, he was able to attend football camp, earn a scholarship, and have a computer through the foundation.
Heslov noted that these were not “huge gestures” but they made all the difference in his life, and the mission of empathy struck the life of Storm Reid, the 14-year-old recipient of this year's Hero of the Future award. Reid most recently starred in the screen adaptation of “A Wrinkle in Time.”
A glow from the heart
Lady Gaga had no need for any of the offered beauty treatments as she took the award and presented it to her mother.
Wearing shades and her up-swept hairdo, she spoke, “Thank you, Mom, for not being afraid of my darkest thoughts.” The loving daughter openly declared “I have struggled for a long time,” with mental health issues, both in public and out of public view. She further gave gratitude for mother’s constant “holding my hand” through dark and lonely times, and for “running an organization that helps hold the hands of others and joins the hands of others. “I love you,” spoke Stefani Germanotta as genuinely as any daughter.
In the wake of the suicides of Kate Spade and Anthony Bourdain, Lady Gaga continued, elaborating that “suicidal ideation feels like a spell, and we have to have empathy. Be kind and help each other break the spell and live and thrive.”
“Secrets keep you sick,” articulated the singer, and she proposed that kindness is a solution for “almost every problem you can think of,” but it cannot be a passing afterthought.
It must become real through action, and Lady Gaga asserted that kindness “is the driving power for all we do.” She reiterated that kindness first changes lives and situations, then communities, workplaces, and the world. She gave a reminder to turn that kindness inward, urging that “being kinder to ourselves” is necessary, too.
It is said that the eyes are the window to the soul, and so are songs. Lady Gaga's eyes were not visible on this special day, but thanks to her words, her heart was on full display.