Wisconsin company creates handcrafted awards for Fox Nation's Patriot Awards recipients
Metal Art of Wisconsin founder Shane Henderson joined 'Fox & Friends' to discuss his creations and why he calls it a 'labor of love' just two days ahead of the awards show.
From working a 9-5 to starting a business, Shane Henderson never imagined what one Instagram post would do for his and his son's lives. Now, Shane and Justis Henderson's company, Metal Art of Wisconsin, is honored with designing the trophies for the upcoming Fox Nation 2022 Patriot Awards.
"Fox Patriot Awards is like, a dream come true… We could not be more humbled and more honored to be involved with this," Shane said in an interview with Fox News Digital.
The 4th annual Patriot Awards, emceed by Fox News' Pete Hegseth, is a yearly show hosted by the streaming service dedicated to celebrating our nation's real heroes. With award categories like Service to Veterans and Most Valuable Patriot, patriotism will be flying high in Hollywood, Florida this Thursday, Nov 17th.
In attendance alongside a long list of FOX favorites, primetime personalities, and honored guests will be the father-son duo behind the awards themselves.
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The Hendersons first started their company in 2013 after launching an Instagram account for their designs. Nearly overnight, what was once a hobby sparked an opportunity courtesy of social media.
Father-son duo Shane and Justis Henderson started Metal Art of Wisconsin after one of their patriotic designs went viral on social media. (Metal Art of Wisconsin)
"We were not prepared for what happened at all. And it was a huge fork in the road to reach the American dream and go all in on this business, or do we keep doing our 9 to 5 jobs?" Metal Art of Wisconsin owner Shane Henderson said. "So we went all in."
"It's possible for anybody to do it. It's the American dream. It wasn't handed down, I didn't inherit it. It wasn't given to us. You know, we fought for every sale," Shane added.
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Shane told Fox News Digital he was a welder out of high school before moving up to Wisconsin where he continued practicing his trade. His son, Justis, grew up working alongside his father, cultivating his own passion for the trade.
"I fell in love with it because it really opened up the door to be creative. And it taught me how to think outside the box," Justis shared. "You could say my first job was when I was ten years old and just hasn't stopped since."
Justis Henderson works in the Metal Art of Wisconsin shop. (Metal Art of Wisconsin)
"All this happened by accident," Shane said. "I mean, I didn't go to school. I didn't go to college. I didn't try to start a business. This whole thing happened because of an iPhone and a plasma table and Instagram."
"Long story short, we woke up overnight and had thousands of orders," Shane said. "And our business… started unintentionally."
After diving into the new venture, the Hendersons expanded their line of products. One of their popular designs, created in 2017, is the Freedom Cabinet, which has hidden storage space behind their signature flag design.
Their products range from outdoor to indoor flags, 2D to 3D products, commemorative pieces to personalized requests, and even desk-size flags. In addition, the Hendersons' company also creates bald eagles, monogrammed signs and 3D Spartan helmets.
"Now we have all kinds of super high-end CNC machinery and engineering people that work with us," Shane said. "We make like crazy, crazy stuff, and it's all patriotic and all it's all variations of the flag and concealment and maple and mahogany, wavy flags."
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Beyond their thriving business, the Hendersons' shared that love of country is a defining aspect.
"We've always been a patriotic family, super blue collar, work for what you want in life. And the tattered flag, I saw a kind of variation of it out there, and we kind of made our own version of it and painted it. Our artistic eye I think just resonated with America at the time."
Outside of their patriotic creations, Shane and Justis Henderson also give back to America's heroes with their program Flags for Fortitude. Started in 2017, the Flags for Fortitude program allows people across the nation to nominate local heroes which the Hendersons' award with a custom flag.
Metal Art of Wisconsin's Shane Henderson helped create a thriving business after risking it all to chase the American Dream. (Metal Art of Wisconsin)
"People nominate local heroes, whether it's a veteran or a police officer or, you know, a school cook or crossing guard," Shane said. "Anyone making a difference in the community, you can nominate them, send us pictures, and tell their story."
The father-son team also donated 13 large, black flags to the families of the servicemen and women killed in the Kabul airport attack in Afghanistan last August. They said they made an additional 17 for the survivors of the attack.
"It was like, super emotional for our entire team," Shane said. "It was an awesome project to be involved with."
Patriotism and love of country is central to Metal Art of Wisconsin, making them a natural fit to design the awards for Fox Nation's Patriot Awards.
In designing the awards, the Hendersons' shared they were inspired by last year's award maker, then-17-year-old Bobby Reuter. The Long Island Flags owner had created awards incorporating a wooden flag.
"I looked at that and I was like, ‘Oh man, you know, I think we could build upon what he did and kind of put our flavor on it,’" Shane told Fox News Digital.
The trophies for the upcoming 2022 Patriot Awards contain a three-dimensional metal American flag positioned on a World War II-inspired riveted stand.
The 2022 Patriot Awards award was designed and created by Metal Art of Wisconsin's Shane and Justis Henderson. (Metal Art of Wisconsin)
Ahead of the live event that's slated to take place in person this Thursday at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino and stream on Fox Nation, the Hendersons shared what being a Patriot means to them.
"Patriotism and loving the country and loving the flag and all that have fallen is to make sure that the flag is there," Shane said. "It's just so many people and politicians and almost half the country is going to rip all that stuff away. And I think the Patriots out there are the ones trying to keep all that stuff still going."
"If you're part of this new generation coming up, and you're very patriotic, it's very rare to see… I have respect for anyone that is still patriotic," Justis said. "This country has really taken a turn for the wrong way. And we're just here trying to keep it alive and keep the spirit up."
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