Jesse McCartney, Miranda Cosgrove among young stars honored in Hollywood

Young stars honored in Hollywood

LOS ANGELES — One group of young Hollywood stars were in the spotlight Saturday — and it wasn’t for getting into a fight outside a night club or being arrested for drunken driving.

Five under-25-year-old stars were lauded Saturday for their philanthropic work.

“High School Musical” actor Corbin Bleu, singer Jesse McCartney, “iCarly” star Miranda Cosgrove, “90210″ actress AnnaLynne McCord and “True Jackson” star Keke Palmer were honored for their respective charity work at Variety’s third annual Power of Youth event.

“I don’t think of it as charity work because I have fun doing it,” said Palmer, the Nickelodeon star who was recognized for her work with the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.

Dozens of young celebs from shows like “Wizards of Waverly Place” and “The Secret Life of the American Teenager” and movies such as “Fame” and “The Twilight Saga” series attended the outdoor block party held on the New York street set at Paramount Studios in Hollywood.

McCartney, who was honored for his work with City of Hope, recently helped raise over $800,000 along with Miley Cyrus and Demi Lovato at a special Nokia Theatre concert performance benefiting the comprehensive cancer center located northeast of Los Angeles.

“I’m just proud to speak out about something I’m passionate about,” said McCartney.

“High School Musical” actor Bleu was recognized for his role as the Starlight Children’s Foundation’s new spokesman while “iCarly” star Cosgrove was honored for her work with the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, which she has visited several times.

“I have met a lot of kids I saw in the hospital who did get better,” said Cosgrove. “That’s always really amazing. I’ve become friends with a lot of the kids, too. I met a little girl named Sarah. She’s just this really cool girl, and we e-mail each other.”

David Henrie from “Wizards of Waverly Place,” Bailee Madison from “Brothers” and Harry Shum Jr. from “Glee” were among the young attendees who posed for pictures in a photobooth, played video games and scarfed down cupcakes, cotton candy and pizza.

“90210″ actress McCord, who was honored as the goodwill ambassador for The Blind Project, a nonprofit organization which works to raise awareness and improve the quality of life for sex-trafficking victims, wished more young stars in Hollywood were involved.

“There’s a lot of twentysomethings who are enjoying their twenties, and that’s great,” she said. “But when you’re privileged like we are as entertainers to make the money that we make and have the notoriety that we have, I think you owe it to the world to give back.”

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