Beyoncé flies out a fan after he was denied a flight because of the size of his wheelchair
The BeyHive isn't all stings. Sometimes they can make honey, too.
A fan thought his dream of finally seeing Beyoncé was crushed when he suddenly couldn't take his flight to Seattle to see her in concert.
The BeyHive, however, came through for Jon Hetherington, sharing his story en masse until Queen Bey herself stepped in and flew Hetherington out to the Houston leg of her Renaissance World Tour.
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images Beyoncé
Hetherington, who has cerebal palsey, was supposed to fly to Seattle last week to see Beyoncé but he claims he was told his wheelchair was too tall to be loaded onto the plane. The airline was allegedly unable to find any other accommodations for Hetherington, so, disheartened, the 34-year-old Oregon resident took to TikTok to vent his frustrations.
"Well, guess I'm not going to see Seattle, and I'm not seeing Beyoncé," he said in a video. "So after 25 years of waiting, I'm not seeing Beyoncé tonight, so ableism strikes again."
But his video struck a chord and the BeyHive got into formation and shared it over and over, tagging Beyoncé and her Parkwood Entertainment. Then, as Bey works in mysterious ways, a representative for Parkwood reached out to Hetherington, personally inviting him to a Houston show, arranging transportation for him, including the flight.
Hetherington posted a few updates from the concert, including an intimate moment with his long-awaited queen — though he's keeping the secrets of the universe she no doubt imparted to himself.
"I will treasure those words you said and the hugs you gave. I meant every word I said," he wrote. "No, for anyone and everyone reading this, I will not ever share with you what was said to me, don't even try it. That moment is between the two of us."
Hetherington, who identifies as pansexual, found special meaning in Beyoncé's seventh studio album, a celebration of Black queer culture. In an Instagram post, he invoked the names of pioneers Marsha P. Johnson, James Baldwin, and Bayard Rustin, while paying tribute to O'Shae Sibley, a Bey fan fatally stabbed in a suspected hate crime after dancing to Renaissance at a gas station in Brooklyn.
"For those who are becoming in a time that has yet to exist," he wrote. "We partied, we sang, we danced…HARD. Beyhive, you made this happen, you pushed and tagged like the internet has never seen. Tonight, for the first time ever, I had a seat on the floor for a concert. Welcome to the RENAISSANCE."
Related content: