Rampant Australian bushfires have destroyed 1,900 homes, killed an estimated one billion animals and evacuated thousands of people. This week, Lizzo added her name to the growing list of celebrities who have come together to support the country’s affected families.
The Grammy-nominated songstress is currently touring through Australia and on Wednesday (Jan. 8) decided to stop by a Melbourne food donation charity.
”We knew someone would be visiting but we weren’t told who. Usually, it’s only politicians who visit so it was a pretty big deal,” one food bank volunteer told Insider.
The outlet reports that Lizzo’s arrival surprised everyone.
”Safe to say everyone was freaking out, even the CEO looked so excited,” the volunteer said. “Just shocked that it was really her and that she would make the time to come to Foodbank.”
Lizzo posed for pictures with fans and donned an orange vest and blue cleaning gloves. She packed food hampers for families affected by the fires and helped sort out donations. Insider reports that the food bank has had over 400 volunteers help sort through donations and pack over 3,000 food hampers.
After volunteering, Lizzo reportedly gave a short speech expressing her love and support for Australia.
“She gave a little speech about how much she’s always wanted to come to Australia and was sad that this coincided with the trip, but then saw it as an opportunity to come and spread awareness and do what she can while she’s here,” a volunteer said.
One volunteer, Emily Stacey, got a picture with Lizzo and said she was “everything you’d hope and expect her to be.”
“She just really boosted morale and was so happy to take pictures and talk to everyone there,” Stacey told Insider.
Lizzo has been on a Twitter hiatus as of late, following some incidents with weight-shaming trolls. However, she did hop on Instagram to post a video from her hotel room in Australia.
“Today’s mantra is: This is my life. I have done nothing wrong,” she wrote on the post. “I forgive myself for thinking I was wrong in the first place. I deserve to be happy.”