A small gesture from a big star is going a long way in the life of a Calgary teenager.
“It’s been a pretty incredible story,” said Christin Woods, the mother of 14-year old Griffin Woods. It is a story that began nearly a decade ago.
“Eight years ago Michael Bublé filmed a little music video for Griffin backstage at one of his concerts,” she said with a grin from her Calgary home.
At the time, the video and her son’s reaction while watching it went viral and garnered international headlines. Her son, who has autism and cerebral palsy, has watched the video “hundreds, if not thousands of times.”
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Christin said the singer’s music helps Griffin express his emotions and connect with other people — things that can be challenging for him.
“I know his greatest connections in life are usually to people through music, so I know Michael has been that person for him where he has felt almost like a friendship through his music.”
The story doesn’t end there. A concert this week in Calgary proved the 2014 video was just the beginning.
Christin said she felt it was time to take Griffin to his first-ever concert. She admitted she was not sure how he would react to seeing his idol in person.
“I really didn’t know if it would translate… or how he’d process that,” she said.
But the second the megastar stepped on stage, Christin said she knew it was the thrill of a lifetime for her son who instantly started cheering for Bublé.
“He just lit up — it was really amazing.”
And Bublé, who recognized Griffin sitting near the front row, made sure to go out of his way while performing to have a personal connection with the young superfan.
“He had been told that we were there, and I saw him scanning around and he’d seen our poster that we were holding, so I knew that he knew that Griffin was there,” Christin said.
“His head security guy came up to me at one point in the concert and asked if there was anything we wanted to have signed.”
Of course the family did. Griffin left with a guitar pick, a towel and a poster signed with a personal message that reads: “I’m still riffin and spiffin for my Griffin. Love You.”
They were small tokens that had a big impact on Griffin, who loves to sing Bublé’s songs even though he is mainly non-verbal. The gestures were ones that Christin said she is forever grateful for.
“I would just want to say thank you,” she said. “Because he (Bublé) doesn’t have to do that.
“He could just get out on the stage, stand there and sing his songs and they’d be beautiful and amazing and people would still love him.”
Perhaps the best memory of that magical night was the moment Griffin reached out to Bublé and the star shook his hand.
“The fact that he would take some time in his life and put that extra effort into making people feel seen and important… you can see that genuine connection and love,” Christin said, adding it was a moment that will last a lifetime.
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