From Stylelist:

Copper-toned complexion. Statuesque neck. Gorgeous gaze. Iman, I am confident in my own skin partly because of you.

As a supermodel, actress, entrepreneur, humanitarian, mother and wife, you've reshaped the "universal perception of beauty" and allowed me to embrace and love the young woman that I am -- long legs, neck and all!

From the camera's viewfinder of famed artist/photographer Peter Beard to the runways of Thierry Mugler and Jean Paul Gaultier, you were able to walk away from the political unrest of your native Somalia and stride confidently into the fashion world. And I can't ignore how you've revolutionized this ideal of the black model when Yves Saint Laurent tapped you as the muse of his African Queen Couture Collection and coined you his "dream woman" -- paving the way for Naomi Campbell, Tyra Banks, Jourdan Dunn and Chanel Iman.

Read the whole letter as well as look back on her best looks here.