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Celebrities are heeding Jimmy Fallon’s call to help Flint residents get clean water

He's calling for 10 friends to match his donation—and they're already coming in.

 

Michelle Jaworski

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Posted on Jan 26, 2016   Updated on May 27, 2021, 7:46 am CDT

Jimmy Fallon has a long list of famous friends who will appear on The Tonight Show and play variety games anytime he wants, but now he’s calling them together for a much more important cause.

Residents of Flint, Michigan, are in the midst of a water crisis after the city’s water supply became contaminated and laced with lead from aging pipes. The crisis, which began when state officials switched the water supply from Detroit to the Flint River, prompted President Obama to declare a state of emergency. It is believed that thousands of children have been exposed to lead, and residents are still in need of clean water.

Celebrities like Cher, Eminem, Mark Wahlberg, Wiz Khalifa, and Sean “Diddy” Combs are telling their fans about the crisis and have collectively donated thousands of bottles to Flint. Fallon is joining the effort, but he isn’t doing so alone.

The late-night host tweeted to his 34.7 million followers that he planned to donate $10,000 to Community Foundation Greater Flint (CFGF) to provide drinking water to residents, and he challenged 10 of his friends to do the same.

Almost instantly, Fallon started getting pledges from other celebrities who promised to match his $10,000 donation.

It’s only been a few days since Fallon’s initial challenge, but the support is already impressive. He’s very grateful to the people who have stepped up.

Thanks to Fallon’s large TV and Internet platforms, it’s likely that even more celebrities and donations will heed his call and donate to Flint.

Illustration by Max Fleishman

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*First Published: Jan 26, 2016, 3:12 pm CST