Entertainment

Updated: Justin Bieber Donates $2.7 Million To Build Schools In Developing Countries, Supports Make-A-Wish

Published on: April 8, 2017 at 3:41 PM
By Page Mackinley

August 10, 2017 Update: The final box office of Justin Bieber’s Purpose World Tour was north of $250 million with just over 2.7 million actual tickets sold. The superstar raised $2,765,147 for Pencils Of Promise (PoP) from his Purpose tour.

Bieber has donated millions to Pencils of Promise — an educational charity — from each of his tours since the start of his career.

The singer has also given money and time to a range of outreach efforts over many years.

Original Article:

Justin Bieber generous giveback to youngsters in need continues.

Following news that his mega-successful Purpose World Tour has grossed around $200 million since last year, the superstar’s ongoing donations to Pencils of Promise rises to $2.2 million — and counting.

Bieber donates $1 to the Pencils of Promise organization from every Purpose Tour ticket sold.

PoP is a non-profit organization which builds schools, provides resources, and increases access to education for children in the developing world.

It was founded back in 2008 by Adam Braun, who is the brother of Bieber’s longtime manager Scooter Braun. As of last year, PoP has installed over 330 schools and helped over 35,000 children in developing countries.

Billboard reports the first box office counts are in from the Canadian star’s second year of his worldwide trek to date.

The music publication writes, “the first 10 concerts of 2017 totals $40 million, bringing the tour’s overall gross to just under $200 million since launching in March 2016.”

Bieber’s massive Purpose World Tour kicked off in Seattle, Washington on March 9, 2016. Billboard adds that since 2016 “more than 2.2 million tickets have been sold at 122 headlining performances worldwide.”

Databox Live got more specific. The site notes 2,229,881 tickets were sold in 122 fully sold-out shows so far.

In 2016, the pop icon’s tour played arenas in 82 cities spanning across North America and Europe. 2017 saw an upgrade to stadiums.

When Databox Live reported Purpose Tour box office last December, those figures came just before the news that more concerts were to be added. At the time, Bieber’s rolling contribution to Pencils of Promise from his Purpose World Tour was reported as around $1.5 million .

Back in May, PoP named Justin as their first global Ambassador. Natalie Ebel — director of marketing — explained the history of Bieber’s involvement with the organization to Teen Vogue .

“Justin has been a member of the PoP family since the early days,” Ebel shared.

“Around the time that he was just a 13-year-old kid with a guitar on YouTube, he met our founder — Adam Braun — who told him about the organization he had recently started,” the director added, recalling the Biebs’ career start in 2007.

Elaborating, Ebel continued , “Since then, Justin’s been a dedicated supporter, truly believing in our mission to provide education for all. Over the years, he has donated millions of dollars to this organization, which funded dozens of schools and provided access to quality education for thousands of students.”

Ebel went on to say that because of Bieber’s committed support to funding, PoP has already started to build seven new schools in the Eastern Region of Ghana. Further builds are planned elsewhere.

Ebel also revealed Justin donated $1 from every ticket sold on his “My World” and “Believe” tours to Pencils of Promise.

Back in October 2013, Justin and Scooter visited a school build in a poor Guatemalan community in Central America.

Justin subsequently posted a video about the trip titled “Guatemala Video Confession: Giving is the best.”

In what was evidently an emotive trip to the school build, Bieber described it as “one of the most magical days of his life,” because he could “make a difference” with his “own hands” for the impoverished villagers he met in Guatemala .

Videos showed Justin physically helping to build the school and making a connection with a little local girl. At one point the singer removed his own shoes and gave them to a young boy.

Toward the end of the video , Justin urged his fans to “make a difference” in their lives.

Fast forward to the now updated box office statistics for the Purpose World Tour .

Based on ticket sales, Bieber’s running donation to PoP is now at $2.2 million — and counting. It is estimated that he’ll raise around $3 million in total for the organization when his global trek finally wraps in September 2017.

[Image by Nick Onken/Pencils Of Promise]

In addition to his sizable — and continuing — PoP donations , Justin also supports the Make-A-Wish Foundation. He has worked with the organization since 2009 .

The “Sorry” singer meets children and teens with life-threatening illnesses through Make-A-Wish at almost every show on his current Purpose Tour.

Similar meets took place during Justin’s Believe (2012-2013) and My World (2010-201) tours.

Back in 2013, the Biebs set a record — at that time, 200 — for granting more “wishes” than any other recording artist. The figure is reportedly now over 380 “wishes.”

There are thousands of reported testimonies detailing how “wish” meet-and-greets uplift the youngsters and families involved.

The latest examples of this were seen in the superstar’s recent Make-A-Wish meets in Mexico , Australia , Chile , Brazil, and Peru.

Pedro Henrique, 16, who has cancer, met the star after his first São Paulo show.

Speaking to a Brazilian media outlet , Pedro raved about Justin’s kindness.

After comparing the experience to being in a “safe and happy place,” the 16-year-old revealed he and Bieber hugged and talked about music and life.

The two also spoke about Pedro’s cancer . The fan kept the details of what Justin said private, but said the Grammy winner was “moved” by his story and spoke comfortingly to him.

“I’m not going to say exactly what he said, but be sure it was the words of someone very humble and with a big heart,” Pedro shared .

The teen’s cousin also praised the pop star in an emotional account which can be read here .

For Pedro’s part, he summed up his longed-for meeting with Justin saying, “Without a doubt, I would like to live forever that feeling and that moment.”

At his second São Paulo concert the following night (April 2), Bieber met a young girl with a life-threatening illness.

Thamires Santos, 17, subsequently posted a series of tweets describing her “Wish” experience.

She shared that she was “very happy” to have met Justin and said [his music] has taught her “never to give up on her dreams.”

Thamires said her time with the pop superstar was “amazing” and revealed he said he would “pray for her.” She added that her encounter with the Biebs was the “best day of her life.”

After Justin’s recent concert in Lima, Peru, one young Make-A-Wish teen got the chance to sing with him backstage.

The fan also gifted the heartthrob with a necklace with a “Beliebers” detail.

The young girl recalled, “I was nervous, I couldn’t look him in the eye. He’s beautiful in all the senses!”

Previously, the Inquisitr has noted that Bieber’s (now) long-standing support of the Make-A-Wish foundation and Pencils Of Promise is under-reported in the media.

What is evident from most headlines and tone of the media’s Bieber-narrative, is its preference for over-the-top speculation about the singer’s personal life, mean-spirited clickbait , often fabricated stories , and judgment when the singer gets understandably frustrated with fans who ignore his “no photos” policy.

Why understandable? Justin announced his “no photos” decision last May, explaining in an Instagram post that constant — and frequently aggressive — demands of selfie-obsessed people leave him feeling like a “zoo animal.”

Is it really that hard to imagine the level of mental and personal space bombardment Bieber faces daily?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlNcrUSVXfY

Yet despite his photo ban, Bieber has never stopped chatting with fans in impromptu meets , as countless random users’ social media posts since last May reveal. It is also bizarre that other celebrities who never, or rarely, take photos with fans receive little to no flak at all.

The irony that Bieber tells his fans he appreciates them at every concert, meets with Make-A-Wish youngsters at almost every Purpose World Tour show, and is on track to donate around $3 million to funding school builds in developing countries by the end of 2017, in addition to his career-spanning history of philanthropy — is undeniable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RO8Ft7W0bWE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCLZm2OKRMY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyFs0f9l4fU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_tFSyYc-M8&t=1s

[Featured Image By Nick Onken/Getty Images]

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