Like much of what's shared on Queer Eye [1], Jess Guilbeaux's story really spoke to viewers. The fifth episode of the show's recently released third season [2] centres on the 23-year-old self-identifying "lumberjack lesbian," who was disowned by her adoptive family after she was outed at 16. Jess later went to the University of Kansas to study computer science, but she began "drowning" in student loan debt [3] and subsequently dropped out.

Throughout the episode, the Fab Five helped Jess reconnect with her sister and come to understand the many ways a family can be defined. (They also gave her sweet new clothes and completely redesigned her apartment and all that.) With her school situation still unresolved, however, one fan created a GoFundMe to fund Jess's college tuition [4]. At press time, the campaign had raised over $35,000 of its $100,000 goal in four days! Jess later shared her gratitude on Twitter . . . and verified the campaign's legitimacy [5] by confirming that she was in contact with the person who created it.

this is so sweet. i have no words. i'm dehydrated at this point😭😭😭😭 https://t.co/bpKHVQjJNp [6]

— Jess (@jesslayica) March 17, 2019 [7]

The heartwarming news also comes after two of Jess's idols, Janelle Monáe and Hayley Williams of Paramore, reached out to her on Twitter after she mentioned them on the show. Janelle described Jess as her "personal hero," [8] while Paramore tweeted [9], "You're gonna inspire so many with your story. It's an honour that Paramore gets to be a small part of it."