Liam Payne gave away £10,000 in one night just before his death

Liam Payne wanted to use his fame and fortune to change lives, and worked with charities including Unicef and anti-poverty charity Trussell, even spending time at food banks during the Covid pandemic

Liam Payne gave away £10,000 to help someone in need just weeks before his heartbreaking death in Argentina.

The 31-year-old fell to his death from his hotel balcony in Buenos Aires on Wednesday, and local authorities are investigating the circumstances surrounding the tragedy. His family and friends, as well as his former One Direction bandmates, paid emotional tributes to the singer, who was also father to son Bear, 7, who he shared with ex Cheryl. His extensive charitable efforts were mentioned in many tributes to the Strip That Down hitmaker, and it emerged that Liam had spent £10,000 in one night to help others in need.

On September 30, Liam was motivated to dip into his reported £46million fortune as he read heartbreaking stories on GoFundMe, and gave £2,300 to help support Jack in the US, who was a 28-year-old suffering from cancer. Liam then donated £3,833 to help four-year-old Macy Shepard, who was diagnosed with a rare tumour on her kidney, and spent £770 to contribute to a girl’s medical bills after she was injured in a school shooting in America. His final donation was £2,223 to help stroke victim Kailyn, who is just four years old.

At the time, he told The Sun he was inspired to donate as he couldn’t help but think of his son Bear, and wanted to help people in America as they have no free healthcare. “As a father, it hits me differently. I have been spending the last few nights trying to finish off the donations so they can get the operations they need - they would be free in my country,” he explained. “I can’t not look at a sick child and not see Bear. I’m not asking for people to say well done or I’m amazing.”

Liam worked hard to help others in need, and took part in Soccer Aid - which raised money for global children’s charity Unicef - for two years. He also teamed up with anti-poverty charity Trussell in his home town of Wolverhampton, and in 2020 announced he had made a “personal, long-term commitment” to support the organisation and its “vital work supplying meals to those in need all over the UK”.

Liam volunteered at his local food bank during the Covid pandemic, and funded more than 360,000 meals for people in crisis, as well as helping more than 100 food banks in cities including Birmingham, Coventry and Stoke-on-Trent. “I want to play my part in finding a solution to ensure people have enough money to buy their own food - and end the need for food banks,” Liam said at the time.

Trussell released a statement when news emerged of Liam’s death, and they paid tribute to the selfless star who had made an impact on thousands of lives. “His death is a very tragic loss, and our thoughts are with his loved ones,” the charity said, adding that they “greatly appreciate the compassion and kindness he always showed to people facing hunger and hardship”.

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