AS GRIEVING FANS mourned the death of George Michael yesterday, charities began revealing the pop star’s generous donations to all kinds of causes.
The 53-year-old singer, who was found dead in his home by his partner yesterday, was best known for 1980s hits such as Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go, Freedom, Careless Whisper and Last Christmas.
But the celebrity that loved late night parties and had a few run-ins with the law has emerged as a patron for charities, and an all round good guy.
Here are some of the stories people have been sharing, starting with this story from commenter Mary Ryan, which was posted on TheJournal.ie article ‘A woman needed £15k for IVF. George Michael secretly phoned and gave her the money’.
“Back in the early 1990s I was working on Edgware Road in London near the Sony Studios. I came out of work to find my little 1974 Ford Fiesta had a flat tyre.
George Michael was coming out of Sony as I was standing there in the rain and helped me change my tyre… I’ve never forgot how kind he was. Sadly, I didn’t have the nerve to ask for his autograph.
Other stories that have been around are equally heartwarming:
For the homeless:
For the disabled:
For nurses:
Source: Shutterstock/ Slavko Sereda
Michael has also given millions of pounds to charities involved with helping children, cancer victims and AIDS sufferers.
Among the groups he supported were the Terrence Higgins Trust, Macmillan Cancer Support, and Childline, which offers confidential phone counseling for young people.
For children
Childline founder Esther Rantzen said Michael gave royalties from his 1996 hit "Jesus To A Child" to the charity along with many other donations.
Over the years he gave us millions and we were planning next year, as part of our 30th anniversary celebrations to create, we hoped, a big concert in tribute to him - to his artistry, to his wonderful musicality but also to thank him for the hundreds of thousands of children he helped.
She said Michael was determined that no one outside the charity should know "how much he gave to the nation's most vulnerable children."
For people with HIV
He also donated a lot to the British HIV charity Terrence Higgins Trust.
Michael had spoken publicly about the pain of losing a partner to AIDS early in the epidemic, but he kept his long history of donations to the Trust private.
In a Facebook post published yesterday, the charity said that the singer often gave donations "to raise vital funds to help us support people living with HIV".
"Along with other charities, we were grateful to benefit from the royalties of George's 1991 duet with Elton John, Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me.
His donations contributed to a vision of a world where people living with HIV live healthy lives free from prejudice and discrimination.
Thanks to George's legacy, we are a step closer to that world and we are so grateful for his support and friendship over the years.
With reporting from AP and AFP
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say