| Henri Landwirth | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 7, 1927 Antwerp, Belgium |
| Occupation | hotelier |
| Known for | founder of Give Kids the World, Holocaust survivor |
Henri Landwirth (born March 7, 1927) is an hotelier, philanthropist, and founder of Give Kids The World and Dignity U Wear. He was originally from Belgium and is a Holocaust survivor. After World War II, he fled to the United States after a stint in the Army; Landwirth took a course in hotel management. He first worked in New York City and then in 1954 became manager of the Starlite Motel in Florida. In 1978 he founded Fanny Landwirth Foundation, named after his mother and the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation in 1984, with the Mercury Seven astronauts. In 1986, Landwirth started Give Kids The World after a reservation had been cancelled by the family of a terminally-ill child that had died while making arrangements for the trip. In 1999 he founded Dignity U Wear which gives clothing to homeless and abused children and their families.
Henri and his experiences in the Holocaust and later with Give Kids the World were the subjects of a 2006 documentary by Robert Allan Black entitled Borrowing Time.