American homeless pianist received a scholarship

Homeless pianist from the American city of Sarasota, Florida, who recently became a YouTube star, received a thirty thousand dollar scholarship from the University of Spring Arbor to complete a musical education, which was once interrupted due to lack of money.

Donald Gould, 51-year-old homeless, became a star after a video appeared on the Web, where he played an instrumental version of 1977's hit song, the year of Comex Sail Away, of the Styx rock band. At the moment, the YouTube video has already gained more than 11,5 million views.

Gould, a former marine, studied college music theory, but did not finish his studies due to financial problems. After Donald's wife died in 1998, he began a difficult life. For the past six or seven years he has been homeless.

He is known throughout the city as Bun. Together with his best friend Paul Lenardo, they play on the streets every day, but they could not collect enough to buy a roof over their heads. Conquered by the performance of Donald, the locals voluntarily help him by launching the GoFundMe campaign, which has already raised more than twelve thousand dollars.

After a local radio station reported on Gould, telling about his past life, the University of Spring Arbor, which he was once unable to complete, announced that he had awarded thirty thousand dollars scholarships to a homeless musician so that he could complete his musical education.

University officials said Gould "has a unique musical gift that he can use to change his life."

To help Gould leave the street life, the university, which is also a Christian institution, provided the musician with a “Christian coach.”

To top it all off, Gould was given the most “civilized” look possible by giving him his first haircut and shave in eighteen months.