On Friday night’s powerful, commercial- free telethon Stand Up 2 Cancer, many celebrities shared their stories, gave amazing performances, and touched the hearts (and hopefully pocketbooks) of many viewers. Taylor Swift was one of the night’s performers, and she performed a brand-new song titled “Ronan.”

The song was dedicated to a four-year-old boy who fell victim to cancer, and as you can imagine, during the performance there was not a dry eye in the house.

Swift cowrote the song with Ronan’s mother, Maya Thompson. The TV program marked the first time Taylor had performed the song in public.

I’m playing a new song ‘Ronan’ tonight on Stand Up For Cancer. It’ll be on iTunes tonight with all my proceeds to cancer related charities.

— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) September 7, 2012

Taylor learned about Ronan, by following his mother’s blog and the story is truly heartwarming. In a “Love Letter To Taylor Swift” written by Maya Thompson, as if her son Ronan was actually writing the letter, you learn how the connection came about. Obviously touched by the superstar’s compassion, we get a glimpse into the real Taylor Swift.

“Here you are standing in front of her, one of the most famous girls in THE WORLD, and she feels like you are her friend that she has known forever. She didn’t feel nervous. She felt like she was talking to someone who knew me, and really cared. My mama didn’t even try to fight back the tears tonight as she was talking to you. She let you see her pain and her sadness. There were no walls up. She’s not like that with many people. She must have felt like you are a really special girl. I watched how gracious you were with your time. I watched as you had this huge concert to perform, but it seemed as thought you were only concerned about my story and the story of these other really sick kids who my mama told you she has to fight for, for the rest of her life.” Read the complete letter here.

Everything I do, is for you. twitter.com/rockstarronan/…

— Mama Maya (@rockstarronan) September 10, 2012

You can download a copy for yourself of Taylor Swift’s new song on the Big Machine website or through iTunes, where it’s already hit Number One.

This is a beautiful thing and I love you so much. instagr.am/p/PViFyDDvO6/

— Taylor Swift (@taylorswift13) September 9, 2012

All proceeds from sales of the song directly benefit the Taylor Swift Charitable Fund.

- Nanci Haskin/99.5 WYCD