An Ottawa boy with a rare disease will have the chance to see Taylor Swift in concert after the winner and organizers of an auction held in his name gave him the tickets.

CTV News reported this year on seven-year-old Jack Laidlaw, who was diagnosed with hereditary spastic paraplegia type four (SPG4), a condition that affects less than 0.01 percent of the population.

His family, friends and community came together to help raise a total of $3 million needed for gene therapy research to find a cure.

Daughters of a family friend decided to organize an auction to donate their tickets to Swift’s November 14th show in Toronto to raise money for Jack. An anonymous donor matched the winning bid by contributing up to $50,000.

An Ottawa woman who won the $20,000 bid said she wanted the tickets to stay with the girls. The girls then decided that they thought it was Jack who had to go to the concert.

“We are blown away by this unexpected turn of events and by his generosity!” Jack’s family told CTV News.

“Jack is so excited. Seeing him be so excited after going through so much (and still staying positive) and seeing the generosity of people who want to help him and our family has touched us beyond belief. words can express.

A total of $40,000 was raised through the auction to find a cure for Jack’s illness, with the addition of an anonymous donor.

Swift’s highly anticipated Eras Tour, the first to gross more than US$1 billion since its launch last March, will take place at the Rogers Center in Toronto on November 14, 15, 16, 21, 22 and 23.

With files from Katelyn Wilson of CTV News Ottawa

Taylor Swift, pictured at the 2024 Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, has donated $5 million to relief efforts following Hurricanes Milton and Helene. (Mario Anzuoni/Reuters via CNN Newsource)