George Michael secretly gave £99k to African Aids charity he heard about on Deal or No Deal
Singer made huge donation to Omwabini, which provides housing and education to orphans in Kenya
GEORGE Michael secretly donated nearly £100,000 to an African Aids charity after hearing about it on a TV game show, it has emerged.
The Careless Whisper singer was watching Deal or No Deal – the same show he was watching when he forked out thousands to pay for IVF for a woman who could not have kids – when he heard about the organisation.
The Reverend Mary Austin, a trustee of the Friends of Omwabini in the UK, made the revelation in a letter to the .
She wrote: “Since the death of George Michael, much has been revealed about his generosity, such as the woman on the TV show Deal or No Deal who received money for IVF treatment from him.
“What hasn’t been said is that after another contestant on the show mentioned that he was raising money for a project in West Kenya, Michael got in touch and made a donation of £99,000 to this small organisation working with victims of HIV/Aids.”
Omwabini, which means rescue, provides accommodation and education for some 500 kids children orphaned by Aids in the East African country.
Austin said George’s 2009 doination made a “huge difference” to the charity.
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Stories of the star’s generosity have been emerging since his death in December.
He gave millions to charity throughout his lifetime – including £25,000 to a debt-ridden woman after hearing her crying in a café.
But he often insisted on secrecy as a condition of his donations as he didn’t want the credit, meaning they are only coming to light now.
Comic David Walliams said the singer pledged £50,000 for his charity efforts when he swam the English Channel in 2006.
And the singer helped countless children as a result of his donations to Childline as well as supporting HIV and sexual health charity the Terrence Higgins Trust and Macmillan Cancer Support.
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