Justin Timberlake gave a $35,000 wheelchair-accessible van to a teen with cerebral palsy in Tennessee.
Jake Stitt, 17, and his family had been trying to raise the money for the vehicle before Thanksgiving, and Justin Timberlake, 39, caught sight of their story and wanted to help.
While the Stitt’s GoFundMe page managed to raise the required funds, Justine — who’s a fellow Tennessee native — decided to pay the cost of the van anyway, which means the family can keep the raised money for other needs.
“‘It’s my pleasure. Like I said, I heard there was a goal to try to get this van before Thanksgiving. I heard your story and saw a little news clip about it,” Justin said during a Zoom call with Jake and his dad Tim.
“I was so moved that I want you guys to have this van. I’m going to cover all the costs. I want you guys to have a great holiday. You inspire me, Jake. The ‘honk if you’re happy’ thing, man, you gotta keep that going. You gotta use this van, you can honk all over town now,” he said.
Timberlake was talking about Jake’s ‘honk if you’re happy’ sign, which he holds outside his house for passing drivers.
“It was a blessing and God bless,” Jake said in WJHL.
“It’s going to make his life much easier as we go into our future and it’s going to make my life a lot easier because there’s not many people that can lift him up and sit him in a van like he needs,” Tim added. “It’s going to make our lives so much easier because of the independence he’s going to have as a young man now.”