Australian comedian Celeste Barber has reached her latest goal in her bushfire appeal.
WATCH: Celeste and the Hemsworth brothers join forces for a cause.
Barely a week after creating the Facebook fundraising page, Celeste has raised more than $50 million in relief funds, which are set to be divided amongst various people and groups affected by the country’s devastating bushfires.
The Instagram-comedian-turned-global-star has been continually revising her fundraising goals as they are reached, thanks to generous people around the world reaching into their pockets.
And with the amount raised already sitting around $200,000 above the current $50 mill target (and constantly climbing), we wouldn’t be surprised to see it hit all-new highs within days.
Celeste’s efforts and the public’s generosity have been astonishing – not only due to what the incredible amount of money will mean to those most affected by Australia’s worst bushfire season ever, but also because her Facebook fundraiser has become the largest in the social media platform’s history.
Appearing on Weekend Sunrise, Paull Young from Facebook’s Non Profit sector told hosts Matt Doran and Monique Wright:
“She’s raised close to $50 million Australian dollars, from 1.2 million individual donors.
“If you imagine every single person in Adelaide giving to one fundraiser, that’s what has happened here.”
Since then, the 37-year-old has not only reached but surpassed her $50m target, taking to Instagram to share the news with the caption: “Power to the people.”
Celeste’s husband, Api Robin, also shared a photo of a grateful Celeste breaking down in tears as the donations continued to roll in.
The comedienne added to her huge bushfire fundraising effort on Thursday, January 9, by rallying the country’s hottest Hollywood exports – Chris and Liam Hemsworth – for the Make It Rain: Fund the Firies 2020 event at Byron Bay’s Beach Hotel.
Celeste MC’d the event, which saw Chris announce he would be auctioning off a workout session with himself and wife Elsa Pataky. The bidding closes January 17 and has already reached the tens of thousands mark.
It comes after Chris and Elsa pledged a whopping $1 million to the bushfire effort, which is in the midst of its most horrific season yet.
“As you’re well aware the bushfires in Australia have caused massive devastation,” Chris explained to his Instagram followers.
“They’re continuing to burn with warmer weather on its way. We’re still in the thick of it here with plenty of challenging times ahead and still to come. So, what we need is your support and your donations.
“My family and I are contributing a million dollars. Hopefully you guys can chip in too. Every penny counts so whatever you can muster up is greatly appreciated.”
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