Paris Hilton Begins Charity Work

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Paris is also set to film a new “surprise” movie.

Paris Hilton is starting to make good on her post-jail promises to help others, turning out at a friend’s charity gala to raise funds for children with spinal cord injuries.

“It’s a great organization,” Hilton told PEOPLE at Sunday’s Life Rolls On Foundation’s 4th annual Night By the Ocean auction. “It gives people hope and I’m really happy to be here to support Jesse.”

Hilton’s close friend Jesse Billauer, a former pro surfer who is now paralyzed, founded Life Rolls On.

The heiress bid on (and won) a $17, 500 surfing lesson with Billauer and Adam Sandler. Even Hilton’s black-and-white dress was a bit of a charity case, created by 19-year old fashion student she met when he helped pump her gas.

“He said he loved me and my style and showed me 30 dresses he designed just for me. I was amazed by how incredibly talented he was,” Hilton said of designer Jonathan Bash.

Although Hilton was recently seen frolicking in Malibu with new pal Tyler Atkins, 21, she claims she’s all business. “I’m just focusing on doing a movie right now,” she says. “It’s a surprise but I start shooting next month.”

And in the meantime, when not hitting the clubs, she says she’ll continue to try to do good.

“I was just at the Los Angeles Children’s Hospital visiting all of the kids and premature babies in the cancer ward,” she said Sunday. “I met with philanthropists and they’re doing a summit with five major charities and we’ll be doing stuff all over the world. I’m excited.”

People

From: Django
Time: July 24, 2007, 1:38 am

Great news, although what’s the betting that this won’t be as widely reported as the negative stuff?

From: Sabrinia
Time: July 24, 2007, 9:17 am

Django, that is exactly what I said to my mom when I told her about this. I was like, “But yet I bet this doesn’t get nearly as much attention as the more negative stories on her do”. It sucks. I hate how people wanna try to keep her in a box and act like she’s the same way she was when she was much younger. She’s grown up and matured since then. People can change and do all the time.

From: Django
Time: July 24, 2007, 10:56 am

Great minds think alike Sabrinia 🙂 Or maybe we’ve just seen how the media works. I’d like to be proven wrong of course and see this more widely reported, but of course many of the sites and writers may feel a little silly after jumping the gun with their “Paris is just doing the same old thing and hasn’t changed a bit – it was all a lie” stories over the last couple of weeks. Few of them will have the integrity to admit they may have been wrong.

Also to add to the point you made, most people are a mix of good and bad/selfish and selfless, but these people seem to expect Paris not to enjoy a single moment of luxury or pursuing her own pleasure, otherwise she’s going back on what she said (despite not saying she was going to change completely or give up partying altogether). They hold Paris to a highly unattainable standard that they wouldn’t hold themselves to.