“Work hard and be kind to everyone”

From Kennedy Core:

“As Dad, Mom, and I were walking through the Denver airport Dad decided he would get his boots shined. I rolled by eyes wishing Dad would have just walked by so we could get to our gate. As the man started working on my Dad’s boots he began to tell us how two of his boys played football for Nebraska. I immediately asked what position they played. He replied running back and wide receiver but you know what “I don’t even care about that, football is just entertainment. My boys got an education. I then decided this man was something special. He proceeded to tell us about the boy he adopted from Africa whose name was Tesfa meaning “Hope” in Ethiopia. Thefa’s father left him when he was very young. AJ (the man shining dad’s boots) couldn’t believe that someone would want to leave something so special behind. “All kids want to be loved.” To be a man means to be there for your kids,” I was in total shock of how amazing this guy was. Before leaving AJ looked at me and said, “You can be anything you want to be if you work hard.” It was one of those moments that will have an impact on me for the rest of my life. If Dad would have never decided to stop and get his boots shined I would have never got the chance to talk to one of the most inspirational men I have ever met. So as we all live our crazy lives never forget to “Work hard and be kind to everyone,” AJ would say.

boots

Shared from Kennedy’s Facebook page!

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