Lynn mother, daughter meet Denzel Washington

LYNN – When Lynn English High School librarian Linda Barefield went to the Swampscott set of “The Equalizer” to catch her favorite movie star in action, she never thought she would end up in his arms.?It was something else,” said Barefield of meeting Academy Award-winning actor Denzel Washington. “I thought I was going to pass out.”The Lynn resident stood in the downpour from Monday?s storm while others disappeared from Magnolia Road in Swampscott to take shelter to catch a glimpse of the star, but never expected him to come over to her since she remembered from his televised interviews that he was actually shy around crowds of fans and liked to stay in character while on set.Washington was in town filming “The Equalizer,” which according to the Internet Movie Database, is a feature film version of the television show. “A veteran covert operative who, seeking redemption for his dark deeds, quits a CIA-like agency and puts a classified advertisement in the paper that reads simply: ?Got a problem? Odds against you? Call the Equalizer.?”But Barefield?s daughter Allana called out to him anyway, shouting a line from Washington?s recent film “Flight,” and he walked over. “He came over and I started sobbing,” said Barefield. “I started talking to him and he was holding my hands and I said, take a picture!”Allana Barefield snapped one photo before Washington took the camera from her and passed it to a police officer working the scene to get a shot of him with both of the two women.Barefield said she had gone to see Washington work in Chelsea a few days prior and he had waved to her then. “I?ve been a fan forever, but I?ve never had the chance to meet him,” she said. “It was great, I will never forget it. It was just so unreal seeing that beautiful million-dollar smile. He was so down-to-earth.”Kait Taylor can be reached at [email protected].