KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City is home to many concerts this summer, like Luke Combs, Billy Joel and Stevie Nicks, and, of course, Taylor Swift. Thousands will be flooding Arrowhead Stadium, at least those who can get tickets. The bigger the concert, the greater the risk of getting caught in a web of ticket scammers.
One family knows this all too well. The Wiemerslage family out of St. Louis attempted to get tickets in Kansas City — the closest show for their daughter. A lot of people may be falling prey to these scams, but for Elsa Wiemerslage and her family, it means more than most can imagine.
"When I was at St. Jude for my third transplant, I really fell in love with Taylor Swift," Elsa said. "She’s a great performer, her acts are beautiful. She’s just an amazing artist."
13-year-old Elsa Wiemerslage has Luekemia and has been been battling it since she was five. She's currently in remission, but still has to come in to the doctor's office three days a week for dialysis.
"Her, just, love for Taylor and how much Taylor has gotten her through," said Adrienne Wiemerslage, Elsa's mom. "She had her ICU rooms, her BMT rooms, they were all decorated with Taylor Swift."
After a hard fall and winter last year of transplants and surgeries, Elsa's parents thought what better way to celebrate than with her favorite artist.
"It would just be so cool, and kind of like closing that chapter of this past last year and just like moving on," Adrienne Wiemerslage said. "Unfortunately, we learned the hard way — scammers are everywhere."
The family lost around $1,000 from their savings due to this scam. They knew it was possible, so they took extra precautions. It was through a mutual friend of a friend, someone they'd never met, where they went wrong.
"All of the sudden he [the scammer] had deleted his Venmo account," Adrienne Wiemerslage said. "We were like, yeah, something’s going on."
Adrienne recommends not buying from people you have never met, or meeting the person face-to-face in a public, safe space before you give them the money.
The family is still looking for tickets for the July 7 and 8 shows, and refuses to give up hope, especially for Elsa.
"When your kid has a dream to see somebody, and I don’t know when Taylor Swift might be touring again… you’d do anything," Adrienne Wiemerslage said.
