Woman tries to return pick to Garth Brooks during concert, gets guitar instead

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (WABI/Gray News) – A woman had the night of her life at the Garth Brooks concert Saturday in Massachusetts.

Jessica Cloukey walked away from Gillette Stadium with more than just memories.

“This sign says, ‘Bangor Maine 1992. I’ve saved your guitar pick for 30 years. Do you want it back?’” said Brooks, reading from a sign in the crowd.

Out of about 70,000 fans in Foxborough Saturday night, it was Cloukey who managed to catch the eye of the country music superstar, WABI reports.

“I saw him back in ‘92. I was 8 years old. He was just starting out. I happened to be on my uncle’s shoulders when he was singing a song and he handed his guitar pick down to me,” Cloukey said.

Instead of accepting Cloukey’s offer to return the pick, Brooks gave her another one, along with his guitar clip.

“Oh, and maybe one more thing,” Brooks told her.

“When he turned and he said, ‘You need one more thing’ – I never in my wildest dreams expected it,” Cloukey said.

The country singer gave her his guitar.

Security took the guitar backstage for the rest of the show for safekeeping, and when it came time to retrieve it – Cloukey and Brooks crossed paths again.

“I don’t know who pulled strings or what happened, but we were able to be out back when he came offstage. It’s etched in my mind. I’ll always remember it. He bent down and put his hands on his knees and he looked at me and said, ‘Sweetheart!’ And I just melted. So, he came over and he signed the guitar. He talked about Bangor. He remembered Bangor! He gave me a big hug and apologized that he was wet. I said, ‘I’m good with that!’” Cloukey recalled.

Brooks is not the only new friend Cloukey has made through this experience.

She said her phone died four times on the drive home from all the messages she got from both people she knew and some she didn’t.

She’s not sure what she’ll do with the guitar yet – just that she’ll keep it in a secure location as a permanent reminder of one of the best moments of her life.

“If you gave me the opportunity to meet anybody in the world, that’s who I would pick. It brings tears to my eyes just knowing that my dream happened,” Cloukey said.

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