Taylor Swift Grants A Wish, Visits 8-Year-Old Fan In The Hospital

PHOENIX, AZ – "She is quite tired but unbelievably exited and grateful," Lilly McCune says of her daughter, Isabella. "It means so much to her.

"She said Taylor was so nice and generous with her time."

Lilly is speaking of Taylor Swift, who paid her daughter a visit over the weekend in the hospital where she's recovering from third-degree burns over 65 percent of her body..

Isabella is an 8-year-old with a lot of strength, her mother says. She was injured on St. Patrick's Day and the McCunes and a bunch of their neighbors were having a block party.

It was chillier than expected so Isabella's dad, J.D., set up the fire pit in the driveway. He used gasoline to ignite it. The explosion set J.D. on fire and as he tried to extinguish the flames, he turned away. (Get Phoenix Patch's daily newsletter and real-time news alerts. Or, find your local Patch here and subscribe).

What he did not know was that Isabella had been next to him and had been engulfed in flames.

"Help me," she cried out. "Help me."

A neighbor ran to her, pulling Isabella from the flames, burning his hands in the process.

As they waited for the ambulance, everyone tried to keep her focused, keep her positive, tell her that she would be OK even though they weren't so sure.

Isabella, it turns out, is a fighter.

Within two weeks, she took her first steps and hugged her mom for the first time since the explosion. She told a local news station that she'd been getting strength from the music of Taylor Swift, her favorite artist.

"I want that to happen," Isabella told 12 News, pointing out that so many people had visited her in the hospital — people she had never met. Why not one more?

After all, Swift would be performing her new tour just outside of Phoenix, in Glendale.

"That would be nice," she said. "It would mean a lot if she came."

Last week, Isabella upped the ante in a video in which she tells Swift, "I heard you were here. I wanted to visit you.

"Maybe you can come and visit me."

On Saturday – Swift's concert is coming up Tuesday – Isabella's dream come true.

Swift showed up with gifts, perhaps the greatest of which was that she hung out with Isabella, a girl who had dreamed of meeting her.

"Isabella!" Swift wrote in the young girl's journal. "I hope you feel better soon and I’m so honored you've been listening to my music.

"You're so awesome and I can’t wait to have you at a show!! Stay strong, gorgeous. Love, Taylor."

Lilly tells Patch that the visit meant so much to her daughter.

"She's an even bigger fan now," she says.

And as much of a hero as Swift is to Isabella, Lilly's daughter is a hero to her mother.

Lilly adds that Isabella's story, her strength are inspiring others.

"We already see that," she says. "The outpouring of support has been extraordinary.

"Strangers are reaching out to us saying that she is their hero."

Lilly has gained appreciation for the star.

"We always knew she was an extraordinary person but she is so much more," the girl says. "She is such a beautiful, kind, thoughtful soul, thinking of others even from her hospital bed."

While Isabella won't be able to make it to Swift's concert on Tuesday – her doctors say that she will need more operations and will be in the hospital for a while – Swift told her that she was a welcome at a future concert.

"Taylor extended an invitation to one of her shows before the end of her tour," Lilly says.

"Isabella is excited to get better and make it to her concert even in a different state."

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Photos courtesy Lilly McCune.