HOUSTON – What started as a pitch on YouTube turned into the sweet sound of donations by many, including mega music star Taylor Swift.
Cousins Jordan Fox and Makaylee Duhon, both 12, of Humble, rewrote one of Swift's songs and posted the video. It was an effort to get donations for a therapy dog for Jordan's 5-year-old brother, Jacob, with autism. Last week, Swift herself donated $10,000. The girls got the news from Jacob's mom.
"She was like, 'Taylor Swift just donated $10,000,' Makaylee said. "And we were all like, 'Oh my gosh!'"
Jacob is a sweet, energetic boy whose autism often causes him to wander away from safety. The therapy dog will help keep him from harm, but also provide something even more special.
"Jacob has a hard time making connections with people, so this is going to be probably Jacob's first friend," said Jacob's mother, Allison Hill.
The idea for the video came from Jordan, hoping to pay tribute to one of her favorite stars while making a difference for her brother.
"I couldn't just look at this situation and ignore it, because it's like, 'He's your brother,' Jordan said. "I love him a lot. He's really special to me."
Swift's donation, coupled with the more than $3,000 donated by others, helped the family pay for the therapy dog, which will be trained and sent to Jacob in the next year and a half to two years.
KPRC 2 News was able to verify with the folks at Go Fund Me that Swift was indeed the person who made the donation.
