It sounded way too good to be true, but Taylor Swift IS that generous!
In a new interview with People, Katelynn Smoot opened up about the moment she found out the 35-year-old singer donated to her daughter Lilah‘s cancer fundraiser on GoFundMe. We previously reported on Mz. Swift’s super kind $100k donation to the Smoot family to cover medical expenses for little Lilah — and now her momma is telling the story of where it all began.
Related: Did Taylor Accidentally Reveal Secret Wedding Plans?!
Back in early October, Katelynn posted a video on TikTok of her 2-year-old declaring she and Taylor are friends. She tagged the pop star and her team, Taylor Nation, in the video that quickly went viral. You can watch it (below):
@standwithlilah I didn’t know they were friends ???? @Taylor Swift @Taylor Nation #fateofopheliataylorswift #TLOASG #taylorswift
Awww! So cute.
Katelynn said of the video:
“I didn’t even realize what she said at first. I asked, ‘That’s your friend?’ and she said, ‘Yeah.’ And honestly, it feels like they really are. I joked to my husband, ‘People really think Taylor’s going to see this.’ He told me, ‘You never know.’ But I had no real hopes she actually would.”
Surprising the momma of three completely, Taylor DID see it — and donated!
Katelynn said her husband Tyler Smoot called her just a few days later from the airport to let her know the news of the HUGE donation. But she didn’t believe it at first:
“At first, I thought he was joking. For about 30 minutes, we questioned if it was real.”
It wasn’t until she saw Taylor’s sweet message did reality start to set in:
“But then we saw it come through on the back end of GoFundMe, along with a message that said, ‘Sending you the biggest hug to my friend Lilah.’ That’s when I knew Taylor really saw the video — and she meant it. Knowing that she saw our video makes me so happy. The donation is incredible — it helps us so much — but the fact that she took the time to watch, to care, to send that message… it means everything.”
So heartwarming!
As for Lilah’s friendship with Taylor? It’s totally real now! Katelynn says they’re no longer playing make believe:
“I told [Lilah], ‘Yes, baby, Taylor Swift is your friend.’ That’s just how she sees it. And honestly, I love that.”
The kindness didn’t stop with Tay’s donation, either. Swifties did their part, too:
“Her donation started this, and the Swifties took it and ran. They’ve almost doubled her donation now. I feel like I can’t say thank you enough. I’m so grateful that more awareness is being spread about pediatric cancer and about ATRT. Even if someone didn’t donate — just seeing our story makes us feel seen.”
And despite not hearing from Taylor directly, Katelynn and her fam feel like this is beyond “enough” for them:
“She’s a very busy woman, and what she did was more than enough. I just hope she knows how grateful we are. It felt like she gave us the biggest hug.”
Precious!
Such an amazing story. We’re glad to hear Lilah and her loved ones were so touched. Reactions, Perezcious readers?
CLICK HERE to read more about Lilah and donate to her GoFundMe if you so wish to!
[Image via standwithlilah/TikTok/Seth Meyers/YouTube]
The post Mom Thought Taylor Swift’s $100K GoFundMe Donation To Daughter Was A Cruel Prank! Here’s When She Knew It Was Real… appeared first on Perez Hilton.