ST. LOUIS (AP) – At age 96, Cyrus Porter is a devoted Taylor Swift fan. He’s traveled from his rural Missouri home to St. Louis and Memphis, Tennessee, to see her in concert.
On Monday, in the midst of a thunderstorm, the concert came to the World War II combat veteran, a surprise visit from the singer and her parents.
He had hosted 72 people for a family Christmas a day earlier. Many of his relatives were still there when a van pulled into the driveway of his home in New Madrid, about 130 miles south of St. Louis.
“My daughter opened the door and said, ‘It’s Taylor Swift!'” Porter told The Associated Press on Tuesday. “I couldn’t believe it. It’s not a miracle but I’d say it’s pretty close.”
Swift spent about an hour talking with Porter and family. Then, on the enclosed back porch, she sang her 2014 No. 1 hit, “Shake It Off,” with dozens of Porter’s relatives joining in.