Travel influencer based in the Philippines Vanessa Konopka has died at age 28 on 7 March, months after she was diagnosed with severe liver damage and pneumonia. No additional details were provided on what caused it.
The German content creator was known for posting alongside her boyfriend Fernando, who started a GoFundMe for Konopka when she became ill in the Philippines on 31 December 2024. He posted an update on their shared Facebook page on 7 March to announce the news of her death.
"She always loved connecting with you all, and her love for the Philippines was beyond words," Fernando said of his late girlfriend. He continued to address her directly, writing, "If you are perhaps reading this somewhere, thank you so much for teaching me how to love myself doesn't matter what other people think."
On the fundraiser page, created on 14 January, he also noted that he was raising money to get Konopka on "a medical air ambulance" flight to Germany, since it would have been the "safest option" amid her health condition.
He was hoping to raise nearly US$ 227,500 to cover the flight, along with "funds to cover her medical bills and any other care she might have." The page has raised US$ 6,729 at the time of writing.
Fernando and Konopka ran their travel account, Happiness Crossing, on Instagram, which has 39,400 followers, and Facebook, which has 251,00 followers. They frequently posted about some of the best spots to visit in Boracay, Philippines.
Despite her condition, Konopka did post on social media while hospitalized on the Filipino island of Boracay, updating her followers on what she called the "hardest journey of my life" in a caption shared on 21 January.
The clip included one moment of her reminiscing on memories in the Philippines, and another of her sitting outside the hospital in her wheelchair. She also documented the series of medical tests she got done amid her liver damage and pneumonia diagnosis.
Fernando also kept their Facebook community up to date and had posted some positive news in more recent weeks. On 20 February, he wrote that Konopka was "out of danger now" and had reunited with her mother. They were planning to bring her back to Germany for treatment once she regained strength, as she was expected to in a "few more days."
In the comments of Fernando’s post, where he announced his girlfriend’s death, many fans paid tribute.
"Oh my God... this is so heartbreaking and shocking. Vanessa... you are so loved by Filipinos and such a beautiful soul to be gone so early. My deepest condolences to the whole family," one wrote.
"My sincere condolences to Fernando and to Vanessa's family. I’m a huge fan, and this is sad. My prayers for her soul that it may rest in peace," another added.