Kylie Jenner has responded to the backlash over her support of a make-up artist’s GoFundMe page and said she believed she was paying the remainder of the costs herself.
The Keeping Up with the Kardashians star was criticised for sharing a page set up to pay Samuel Rauda’s medical bills.
The GoFundMe page said he “underwent major surgery” earlier this month after reportedly being involved in a car accident.
Jenner, said to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars, shared the appeal with her 222 million Instagram followers and donated $5,000 (€4,200) to the page, which led to some social media users saying she should have given more.
However, the reality TV star has now said she believed she was making up the difference between the total raised and the target, sharing a message on social media to “clear up this false narrative that I’ve asked fans for money”.
The 23-year-old said Rauda has not worked with her recently and “we don’t have a personal relationship anymore”.
Jenner said her current make-up artist, Ariel Tejada, informed her of Rauda’s plight, which is when she visited the GoFundMe page.
The reality TV star wrote when she first clicked on the website the goal was at $10,000 (€8,400) and had already raised $6,000 (€5,000), so she donated her $5,000 to reach the target.
It was then she posted it on her Instagram Story to “gain more awareness if anyone also felt compelled to share or donate”, Jenner said.
She added: “I don’t know how all of this got so twisted but his family has reached out through Ariel and are very appreciative of all the donations, prayers, and love towards Sam.
“Anyone that knows me knows that I do things from the heart and I try to be helpful whenever I can be.
“Let’s all stay positive and keep Sam, his family, and anyone you know who is going through a difficult time in our prayers.
“I hope you have a beautiful day and let’s encourage each other to help.”
The GoFundMe page now has a target of $120,000 dollars (€100,835) and has raised almost $100,000 (€84,000).
