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Giving children their smiles back Niccel Steinberger, Terre des hommes’ new ambassador

by Terre des hommes | Terre des hommes (Tdh) - Switzerland
Friday, 28 February 2014 14:08 GMT

* Any views expressed in this article are those of the author and not of Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Giving children their es back, Niccel Steinberger, Terre des hommes’ new ambassador

She writes books on humour and books to make one laugh, gives seminars where the power of laughter is explored, runs a publishing house with her husband, the famous Swiss humorist Emil, whose tours she also organizes. Niccel Steinberger, 48, has herself a truly joyous nature and is bursting with energy. This year she became an ambassador for Terre des hommes – child relief. Her aim: to contribute, through her lust for life, to easing the hard daily life of so many children.

“My parents were divorced, so I know from first-hand experience that life isn’t always rosy. My mother had to bring us up alone, four brothers and sisters and me, and that was tough. But she was strong for us and gave us love and understanding. Later on I discovered how a sense of humour helped me surmount some of life’s problems. Children are the absolute masters of laughter, but there are moments when they lose their smiles, too. By helping children get their smiles back, we’re giving them courage. Because laughter makes you strong! Children are the most precious things we have, and it’s our duty to do our best for them, to protect them, to help them be strong and to give them a world worth living in. That’s the reason for my commitment to Terre des hommes.”

In March, Niccel Steinberger will be travelling to Morocco (http://www.tdh.ch/en/countries/morocco), to visit Terre des hommes’ projects for specialized treatment (http://www.tdh.ch/en/topics/health/specialised-care) as well as the centre for the protection of migrant women and children (http://www.tdh.ch/en/news/morocco-a-country-of-transit-for-thousands-of-migrant-women-and-children). Story will follow.

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