CHARACTER COUNTS

Suns fan gifts tickets, surprise to boy struggling with bullying

Mar 16, 2023, 7:36 PM

(Twitter Photo/@DevNa79)...

(Twitter Photo/@DevNa79)

(Twitter Photo/@DevNa79)

An outspoken Phoenix Suns fan provided tickets to a boy who had dealt with bullying at school and his mother for Thursday’s game against the Orlando Magic.

Andrew Leezus, who has over 20,000 Twitter followers, posted a tickets giveaway contest on Wednesday, asking people to comment whom they would bring to the game and why.

An account with the name “Mrs. Devona” responded with a photo of three children, saying they’ve never been to a Suns game and the oldest has had a difficult time at school with bullying. The post said he had been pulled out of high school because of it, and it would be nice to take him.

On Thursday, Mrs. Devona posted a video of her son, Shawn, finding out he was going to the game.

“Oh my goodness, seriously?” he said in the video. “Oh my goodness, we’re going to the Suns game!”

The two made it to Footprint Center with Shawn decked out in his Suns attire, but there was another surprise waiting for him. Leezus tweeted that he wanted to make Thursday the best night of Shawn’s life.

He got to meet Suns star Devin Booker while he was on the floor for warmups, and Booker took a photo with Shawn and his mother.

“I am born and raised in Phoenix,” Leezus tweeted. “I’m in tears right now. I see a young Suns fan and I see myself. I can’t believe how amazing this community is. I want to try my best to keep giving back.”

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