Singer Taylor Swift donated $30,000 to help an 18-year-old student, Vitoria Mario, who was offered to study math at one of the top British universities.
Mario first moved from Portugal to London in 2016. Without being able to “utter a word in English,” she still managed to score the top grades in all her A-Level course. Her top performance led her to recieve an offer to attend UK’s University of Warwick and study mathemathics.
The 18 year old student, whoose father passed and mother still resides in Portgual, said her family was unable to support her. Mario is also uneligible for student loans or grants because she does not have a “home” status in the U.K.
In an attempt to gather money quickly, Mario set up a GoFundMe page to raise 40,000 pounds, which is approximately 52,000 US dollars, to attend college. Although moving away from her family was challenging, in their eyes the scarifice was worth it because, “if you can get a university education in the UK, you will be set for life” Mario writes on her GoFundMe page.
Desperate to make her and her families dreams come true, Mario shared her story on social media and reach out to numeroues “top firms” for assistance but faced rejection.
“As desperate times called for desperate measures, I also went to some of the most affluent postcodes in London, including Kensington, to post my story though letterboxes, but unfortunately faced the same response.”
With a deadline fastly approaching, Mario only had about half of her targeted donation.
Than a donation of $30,000 came in with a message signed by Taylor Swift.
“Vitoria, I came across your story online and am so inspired by your drive and dedication to turning your dreams into a reality,” swift wrote. “I want to gift you the rest of your goal money amount. Good Luck with everything you do! Love, Taylor.”
Mario who was already a fan of the singer, now claims she will be a fan “for the rest of her life.”
In an instagram post, Mario expresses her excitment over hitting her donation amount. She refers to the gift as a “blessing out of the blue.”
This is one of many recent donations Swift has made to fans who are facing hardships during these times.
