To Jess Buslewicz, it was a normal Wednesday hanging out at home watching TV until she got a notification online saying, “You have received $3,000 from Taylor Nation LLC.”
“I’m pretty sure I blacked out for like I remember seeing the notification and then the next five minutes. I have no recollection,” Buslewicz told us over the phone on Friday.
Buslewicz, a sophomore at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, said she had to return home to Newington, Connecticut, due to the rapid spread of the coronavirus. She lost her job as an on-campus tour guide and her babysitting job, both of which helped pay for her school books and tuition.
On top of everything, her mother has also lost much of her work as a travel agent.
Buslewicz, who has been a massive Taylor Swift fan since the age of 7, has been running a blog on Tumblr dedicated to Swift, and turned to it amid the pandemic.
“I posted that, you know, I lost two of my three campus jobs. My mom’s a travel agent. So that industry is obviously suffering a lot right now,” she said. “And I was just kind of worried about what we would be doing financially for the next few weeks, months, however long this lasts.”
Most of her followers donated $5 or $10, for which she was grateful. But she said it wasn’t until Wednesday evening that she said she received the notification from Swift.
“Jess, I saw your post about everything you’re going through, I’m sorry you lost your campus job. I can see that this situation has caused you intense anxiety and I hope this gift of $3,000 will help and that you and your mom are healthy and safe. Sending you hugs, Taylor,” the singer wrote in the message section, according to a screenshot Buslewicz posted.
Swift also reportedly gave a New York woman a $3,000 gift.
Page Six has reached out to Swift’s team for comment.