Glamour

Petra Nemcova
In Style,  2005

After the tsunami in Southeast Asia, most people were moved to make a donation. Supermodel survivor Petra Nemcova made a lifelong vow: to help the orphan kids the tragedy had left behind. “In 10 years they will still be recovering,” says Nemcova, 26, who was in Thailand with Boyfriend Simon Atlee when the tsunami hit. Atlee was killed, and Nemcova, her pelvis broken, clung to a tree for hours. She wasn’t expected to walk again, but recovered in just months, motivated by a desire to keep the world focused on victims’ needs. In June, after she went back to work and met orphans who’d survived but had “eyes with no signs of life,” her Happy Hears Fund was born; it’s since raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to rebuild schools and provide grief counselling. Today, Nemcova, a onetime Sports Illustrated cover girl, is as likely to spend her day with an aid worker as a photographer. “Her follow-through and passion, against a backdrop of grief, are remarkable,” say Mike Rea, director of Give2Asia.org. Despite all she’s endured, Nemcova say she feels lucky: “It’s strange, but when bad things happen, they can bring opportunities to do good.”