East Hampton - Maria Bello does not come to the Hamptons often but she surely made her mark this weekend when she hosted The Hamptons for Haiti Event "Making an Impact on the Poorest of the Poor in Haiti" at the Ross School on Sunday July 17, 2011. The event which featured brunch, cocktails, a live auction and a musical performance by "The Diva of Haiti" Barbara Guillaume, who is running for Mayor of Haiti.

Artist Peter Tunney jokes around with actress Maria Bello.(Nicole Barylski)

The star studded event was attended by NBC's "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" star Mariska Hargitay, CBS's "Medium" star Patricia Arquette, founder of Urban Zen Foundation, designer Donna Karan, actors Liev Schreiber, Fisher Stevens and Terry O'Quinn, New York Rangers' Sean Avery, models Hilary Rhoda and Kristine Szabo, director and producer Doug Liman, singers Melky Jean and Barbara Guillaume, author Alison Thompson, Urban Zen creative director Sonja Nuttall, fashion photographer Marc Baptiste, Senior Vice President of Social Impact at AOL/Huffington Post Brian Sirgutz, artists Beth O'Donnell and Peter Tunney, photographer Elizabeth Jordan, CQ: Expressive & Receptive Intelligence founder Clare Munn, designer Christopher Fischer, benefit-chair of Southampton Hospital's 53rd Annual Summer Gala Jean Shafiroff and philanthropist and model Anjhula Mya Singh Bais.

Bello looked stunning at the event in a multicolored Dior dress and when asked about her favorite Hamptons spot she replied lounging at friends houses in their pool.

Bello and co-founders got the idea for We Advance while visiting Haiti after the earthquake, they were at an IDP camp and women kept asking them for health-care help. With the need for a clinic evident they decided that they would start in the poorest neighborhood with a clinic, which would help women and children with health-care, community outreach, play programs and English class.

We Advance co-founder Barbara Guillaume. (Nicole Barylski)

Bello who visits often to see the work that We Advance is doing says that Haiti has the most extraordinary beaches and the most beautiful, joyful people. She stated, "People are so receptive if anyone wants to help, especially when there is no democracy and you are working directly with the Haitan people and empowering them and they know what they need best and you are only there to help them."

They decided that We Advance would be run by women because the partners and board of directors are all powerful fierce, amazing Haitian women and We Advance has a staff mentorship program so that within three or four years they can completely hand over the whole program to Haitian women.

Her goal for the benefit is for people to learn things about Haiti that they haven't seen before, see work that so many people are doing to support the cause, and volunteer. She took to the stage to sell a trip to Haiti to volunteer with her. You could see Bello's passion for Haiti when she stated, "When my foot stepped on the soil I knew it was home."

With so much celebrity support Bello said that they were all very receptive to help and she was so lucky. She has many friends who live out in the Hamptons like Hargitay and when they offered to have the event she knew it would be a great opportunity. She and Hargitay have been friends for 15 years and she considers Hargitay one of her best friends. Hargitay has The Joyful Heart Foundation and they support each other's causes.

Up next for Bello is her new show "Prime Suspects" on NBC. It premieres this fall and is on Thursdays at 10 p.m.


For Urban Zen creative director Sonja Nuttall, Haiti is also an extremely important cause and she has been down to volunteer several times. At Urban Zen they are inundated with requests for help with charities, and to decide who to help they look at who they want to support and because they have the center they have to think about what people want to see, and do they have themes like Haiti. Nuttall says, "It's a serious matter but Haiti was an initiative that happened because of the disaster. Haiti becomes one of our initiatives because it becomes a matter of preservation culture." Urban Zen has a new executive director, who goes through and looks at who they can help. Well-being is Urban Zen's biggest initiative and they wish they could help everyone.

Director Fisher Stevens and actor Liev Schreiber. (Courtesy Photo: Liam McMullan/patrickmcmullan.com)

Nuttall and Bello are doing a documentary on Guillaume who is running for mayor of Haiti. They are going down to Haiti more to work on that. Karen also goes down a lot, and just completed the most extraordinary product collection with all the artists. Nuttall says that, "Haiti is now becoming our home."

When she first went to Haiti she was very disillusioned and overwhelmed. They went down to see where they put the tents that they donated. They put down 70 tents for 70,000 people. She was disillusioned and confused, and stated "You got down there and you saw the devastation and bodies and it was pretty horrific, but then saw the pride and the people and the joy and the heart. It's hard to talk about but then you saw this love." The most important thing for NuttalI was when they had a dinner and she wanted to know what the young entrepreneurs are doing so she spoke with a group and discovered their phenomenal work. She stated, "They are doing great things for the people. They are doing in their own country for their people."


Nuttall also emphasized what great work We Advance is doing. She said, "When you see what they are doing with their money and how much money they get it's pretty phenomenal. Maria is going to change Haiti. She is doing it with integrity, and a small budget. We are here to help her. Urban Zen wants to help them as much as they can."

To support We Advance and Global DIRT visit their website, where you can donate money or even apply to volunteer.