Gelila Assefa Puck, a philanthropist and fashion designer for whom Pomegranate provides marketing and promotion support, has partnered with the Orphaned Starfish Foundation to bring additional aid to the Gelila Assefa Puck Skill Training Center in Aleltu, Ethiopa.  The Orphaned Starfish Foundation's contribution includes hardware, software, materials and trainers for the center's new computer skills training lab.  It's part of the Training Center's larger mission to provide important job skills to children. A foundation of knowledge in computers will be a strong advantage for these children as they grow up and work to support their families.

Having been born and educated in Ethiopia, Ms. Puck knows the country's challenges first hand.  And it's precisely the reason the Gelila Assefa Puck Skill Training Center was created.  The Training Center is also supported by the Ethiopian Children's Fund, and organization focused on supporting and educating Ethiopia's youth.  Through its various programs, the Ethiopian Children's Fund currently helps over 400 children.

In this day and age, Africa is a popular destination for charity from American celebrities (or at least it was before the earthquake in Haiti).  And while it's admirable and beneficial for anyone to get involved wherever and however they can, it's refreshing to see Gelila Assefa Puck's personal connection to her charity.  As an Ethiopian native, her relationship with the country is intimate and longstanding.  So she and her husband, famous chef Wolfgang Puck, use their resources to improve the way of life for a new generation of Ethiopian children.  I'd take that over a story about Brangelina in Somalia any day.