George Michael donated over $500,000 to a HIV charity in honour of lover Anselmo Feleppa

When George Michael passed away on Christmas Day 2016, it didn’t take long before stories of his staggering generosity were reported to the press.

Over one year since his sudden passing, the stories are still coming – with it now being revealed that the singer donated half a million dollars (£364k) to a HIV charity in the years before his death.

Los Angeles-based organisation, Project Angel Food, was founded to help those suffering from malnutrition and HIV.

The establishment’s executive director, Richard Ayoub, told The Mirror: “We can’t thank him enough.

“He was so supportive and is the single largest donor in our history. He sent a $25k donation to us religiously every year to the tune of more than half a million dollars.

“His passion and love and support was felt here every single year.”

George is also said to have worked in the charity’s kitchens, even donating his Mercedes to sell at an auction in order to raise more money.

Ayoub added: “He did a lot of things for us very quietly.

“He did it without fanfare and without credit. George really did not want to bring the spotlight to him.”

The charity boss went on to thank George’s fans for “filling the gap” with donations following George’s death, with Project Angel Food delivering 10,000 meals a week to those battling life-threatening diseases, including HIV and AIDS.

The charity was close to George’s heart following the tragic death of his partner, and first love, Anselmo Feleppa, who passed away from AIDS in 1993.

Speaking on Desert Island Discs in 2007, George said of Anselmo: “It was a very strange first love. It was very distorted by the situation. This was the first love of my entire life.

“It was tragic that I lost him, but it was a wonderful experience meeting him. There have only been three times I’ve really fallen for anyone.

“And each time, on first sight, something has clicked that told me I was going to know that person. It happened with Anselmo across a lobby.”

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