Dubai: She might be known for her sensual dance moves and booming voice, but Colombian siren Shakira has another mission she's as passionate about as her music: universal education.
The multiple Grammy Award-winner started her Pies Descalzos (Barefoot) Foundation in 1997 to build free schools long before she broke through international pop with her hit single Whenever Wherever in 2002. Shakira, whose father is of Lebanese descent, told tabloid! the conviction to help others comes from a profound experience she had as a child.
"My father's jewellery business went bankrupt and he sent us to Los Angeles while he was figuring things out," she recalls. "I was surprised and disappointed when I came back to see how much our lifestyle had changed. Then my parents took me to a local park to see the kids that had no place to go; some were sniffing glue to keep warm. Right then and there I decided that when I was able, I would find a way to give back to kids like those that I saw that day."
The multiple Grammy Award-winner started her Pies Descalzos (Barefoot) Foundation in 1997 to build free schools long before she broke through international pop with her hit single Whenever Wherever in 2002. Shakira, whose father is of Lebanese descent, told tabloid! the conviction to help others comes from a profound experience she had as a child.
"My father's jewellery business went bankrupt and he sent us to Los Angeles while he was figuring things out," she recalls. "I was surprised and disappointed when I came back to see how much our lifestyle had changed. Then my parents took me to a local park to see the kids that had no place to go; some were sniffing glue to keep warm. Right then and there I decided that when I was able, I would find a way to give back to kids like those that I saw that day."
