It took years for Brandon Ragland to meet his idol again and for things to finally come full circle.
He was only four years old when he was battling cancer, and like most kids suffering the big C at such a young age, the Make-a-Wish Foundation was one of the things he hoped for.
He had one simple wish: to meet one of his idols and childhood heroes – Steve Burns.
Steve was the first host of the children’s educational show Blue’s Clues.
Launched in September 1996, the television show has become a household staple, especially for kids with a knack for looking for clues, putting them together, and solving the mystery from the famous cartoon dog named Blue.
Steve, as the host, facilitates all these making it interactive for those watching in their homes.
Brandon was one of those kids who wished he could meet Steve in real life.
He was granted his wish, and the two met at Serendipity 3 in New York City.
You could only imagine how happy he was to finally meet Steve.
On the other hand, Steve never thought how that moment would eventually come full circle.
Fast forward to two decades later, they met again.
It wasn’t set up or planned like how the Make a Wish Foundation arranged their meeting years back to grant four-year-old Brandon’s wish.
The meeting was more of a surprise and a sweet one at that.
Steve was one of the guests at Steel City Con held in Pennsylvania.
Brandon, who’s now a father and has been in remission for over 20 years – had a couple of photos in his hands as he approached the table where Steve was seated.
Then, he showed him the pictures of their first meeting and introduced himself.
He could not believe that Steve still remembered him.
“I remember this! I remember you!” Steve exclaimed at the sight of those photos.
Brandon shared what transpired that day in Steel City Con on his Facebook account and said that Steve started recalling how he was “a wild child crawling under the restaurant table.”
Steve took a moment to take a selfie with Brandon, but not without saying touching words.
He hugged him and told him, “I’m so happy you’re here. This made my entire year.”
Steve’s voice cracked, and the two were holding back tears. And there’s no better way to come full circle than this.
Brandon wrote about the emotional experience on Facebook, saying Steve was “one of the nicest and most genuine people I’ve had the pleasure to meet.”
His touching post has been shared over 83K times.
All this timing fit just right, as Blue’s Clues celebrated their 25th anniversary last year.
Nostalgia hit their fans when Nickelodeon Jr.’s page when Steve Burns returned in his familiar green stripe shirt with a message to his fans.
So about that time Steve went off to college… #BluesClues25 pic.twitter.com/O8NOM2eRjy
— Nick Jr. (@nickjr) September 7, 2021
It was a heartwarming video reminding the kids who followed his (and Blue’s) journey that he never really forgot about them. I admit I teared up watching this video.
The show announced that they would have a reunion for a live-action film.
It will feature Steve and the other two hosts that came after him, Donovan ‘Joe’ Patton and Josh dela Cruz. Those who grew up watching the show look forward to seeing their TV pals again.
Watch their announcement and interview in the video below!
