It’s important for kids to learn the value of a dollar at a young age. When kids want something, it can be rewarding for them to work for it rather than get their parents to pay. Recently, when two young kids wanted to see their favorite country artist in concert, they worked hard to pay for the tickets themselves — and it paid off big time when they got a special shout-out from the star himself.
Luke Combs is one of today’s biggest country stars. He is known for hit singles like “When It Rains It Pours,” “Beautiful Crazy” and “Beer Never Broke My Heart.” So when the singer was coming to Bangor, Maine for a concert, 12-year-old fan Bo Fenderson and his friend Tanner knew they had to be there. But concert tickets aren’t cheap. “The concert was brought up and it was an immediate, yes,” Bo’s mom Desiree told TV5. “But, the tickets were pricey.” So, the parents made the boys a deal: they could go if they could pay for the tickets themselves. The determined kids quickly got to work, landing a gig stacking wood. After earning $100 each, the boys were on their way to see Luke Combs in concert. Scoring premium seats not far from the stage, they made sure everyone knew how hard they worked to get there, holding up a sign telling their story.
“We made $100 bucks stacking 5 cords of wood, bought two Luke Combs tickets,” their poster read. “Man, he sounds good. Our Dads swore it was a waste of time, oh but they were wrong. Today’s my 12th birthday, oh Lord when it rains it pours.” The sign got the attention of Luke Combs himself, who stopped in the middle of his set to give the kids a special shout-out. Stopping to speak to the boys, he was amazed they had earned so much money on their own — and decided to do something extraordinary. He reached into his pocket, pulled out $140 cash, and gave it to them, reimbursing them. “I only got $140 right here. Y’all want that, pay yourselves back. I’ll get you some more,” Combs says.
Video shows Combs also signing the boys’ hats, and offering to get them some “shirts and stuff” after the show. “He came towards us and we were able to meet with him. I thought it was really cool,” Bo told TV5. The country artist later met up with the boys and their families backstage, and took a photo with the kids. Their parents were moved to see the country star go out of his way to make their night even more speical. “He’s a great role model to take the time and do that, and really acknowledge what they did,” Desiree told TV5. “It wasn’t just Luke, it was the rest of the staff too that made it happen and made it a point to come find us and the boys and fulfill that promise that he made to them.”
Not only did these kids get to experience a concert they’ll never forget, but they learned the importance of hard work. “The two most important things in life are hard work and kindness,” Bo said “Hard work pays off,” Tanner added. Luke Combs has been building a reputation as being very generous with his concert-going fans: he recently made headlines after refunding the audience for a concert because his voice wasn’t up to par, even though he performed the entire show.