- Felipe Conrado has been a dedicated Taylor Swift fan for more than 13 years
- Only a few weeks before the communications manager attended the third and final Eras Tour show in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, his cousin Angela, 37, was diagnosed with cancer
- During the concert, Conrado caught a part of Swift’s shoe that had fallen off, which he decided to sell to help pay for his cousin’s treatment
- Now, months later, he tells PEOPLE that his cousin completed her treatment in September, and thanks to a donation by Christian Louboutin, he got to keep the shoe
Felipe Conrado has been a dedicated Taylor Swift fan for more than 13 years. So, when the singer-songwriter announced she would be bringing the Eras Tour to his home country, Brazil, he jumped at the opportunity to attend. However, Conrado, 33, had no idea just how life-changing the experience would be — not just for him, but for his entire family.
Only a few weeks before Conrado, a communications manager, attended the third and final show in Rio de Janeiro, his cousin Angela, 37, was diagnosed with cancer. Initially, her health insurance promised to cover the treatment. But after the first month of chemotherapy, Angela received an unexpectedly high bill — one that the family simply couldn’t afford.
“She appealed to the government, but our healthcare system only covers costs for more advanced cases,” he tells PEOPLE exclusively. “In this situation, she took legal action to seek a solution, and meanwhile, the family came together with the goal of raising enough money to cover at least the first few months [of treatment], which took weeks of hard work.”
But now, months later, Conrado says that his cousin completed her treatment in September — thanks, in part, to a stroke of Swiftie luck.
While sitting in the front row at the Eras Tour, Conrado noticed Taylor Swift crouch down on stage. Though he could tell something was off, he couldn’t immediately figure out what it was.
At first, he thought she had tripped or that something had gone wrong on stage. Then, he saw her turn toward where he was sitting, right in front of him, and throw something in his direction.
“I had no idea what it was, but my instinct was: RAISE YOUR HAND AND CATCH IT!” he recalls. “That’s when I noticed the right Louboutin boot heel from her Lover era [look] land perfectly in my hands mid-air. It took me a few seconds to realize what I had caught, and the people around me were also in shock.”
“I quickly put the shoe in a bag I was carrying, and only after looking at that shiny piece did I understand: I had just received a historic item from the original Eras Tour wardrobe,” he adds. “I’m still speechless to this day.”
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Despite his excitement over having caught such an iconic piece of memorabilia, shortly after securing the heel, Conrado realized that he could probably sell it to help raise funds for his cousin’s treatment. After sharing his plan on social media, he faced some criticism, but soon his phone was flooded with messages from people offering to help.
One Swiftie in particular, Andrea Rumsey, reached out to learn more about the situation. She translated Conrado’s post into English and mobilized hundreds of other Swifties through a movement called #KeepTheHeel. While they wanted to support Conrado’s cousin, he says they didn’t want him to have to give up the heel for it.
“The #KeepTheHeel movement was something that absolutely took me by surprise,” he says. “I knew many fans would hear about the story because it was so unexpected, involving the biggest artist of our generation, but it filled me with happiness to see fans mobilize to make sure I didn’t have to give up something so unique due to a difficult situation.”
“It was an incredibly thoughtful movement, aimed at helping my cousin and keeping Taylor’s gift in the hands of the fan who caught it,” he adds. “I’m deeply grateful to every fan who joined and supported this movement.”
Eventually, the social media posts reached Christian Louboutin himself, who sent Conrado a handwritten letter saying he was moved and touched by the story, and would love to help pay for his cousin’s treatment. The Brazil native says when he first read the letter, he “had no reaction other than to cry tears of joy.”
“Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine something like this could happen,” Conrado says. “The first thing I did was call my cousin, who cried with happiness and emotion. We are immensely grateful for his gesture, as he brought light and hope during a time when the disease itself was already so challenging.”
“It was a beautiful and emotional ending to the story,” he continues. “That heel came to our family at just the right moment!”
Since completing treatment in September, Conrado says his cousin is doing well, and is forever thankful.
“In this Cinderella-like metaphor, having her heel [brings] such a huge emotion,” Conrado says. “Who knows, maybe one day I’ll get the chance to meet her and thank her for the surprise that changed my family’s life!”
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