Boy, 9, Buys House For Struggling Family Through Fundraiser

This nine-year-old boy has managed to make his dream come true and buy a house for his struggling family after a Good Samaritan set up a fundraising campaign.

Joao Bernardo, who lives in the southern Brazilian municipality of Maringa, first came to netizens’ attention in September 2020 when he put in an offer for a house in the north-eastern Brazilian state of Sergipe on a mobile phone app.

Screenshots of the exchange between the youngster and the estate agent, posted on Facebook by the boy’s mother, 38-year-old cleaner Daiana Campiolo, swiftly racked up thousands of likes and shares.

Day Campiolo/Newsflash

In the conversation, the youngster proposed to the estate agent that he would pay for the house worth BRL 110,000 (GBP 15,543) in monthly instalments of BRL 50 (GBP 7).

He wrote: “I’d like to live there with my mum and brother because our current home is very small. My mum always has to pay rent and she can’t spend much because it’s very expensive.”

Joao’s dreams were temporarily put on hold when the estate agent informed him that the minimum monthly payment for the house was BRL 1,376 (GBP 195).

Newsflash

However, his Christmas wish was granted when an online fundraiser set up by a well-wisher in the wake of the viral post recently hit BRL 225,000 (GBP 31,802).

The family has since bought a house with the money donated by over 4,000 good Samaritans, and Joao, his mum, and his older brother Kauan are currently preparing to move into their new home.

Joao’s mother told local media that buying a house had been her son’s dream since his father died two years ago and the family had to downsize to a studio flat due to financial difficulties.

Newsflash

She said: “I can only thank everyone touched by Joao’s story who helped us achieve our dream.”

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