USA — For two long years, the hallways were not an easy place for 10-year-old Christian.

Day after day, he endured the snickers and the taunts. Bullies laughed, calling out, “You look like a girl!” Even well-meaning adults would frequently tell him it was time to get a haircut. Through it all, Christian never argued, never fought back, and never explained himself. He simply tucked his long hair behind his ears and kept walking.

He didn’t care about the insults because he had a secret mission.

Yesterday, that mission came to an inspiring conclusion. Christian walked into a local barbershop with a grim determination and a head full of hair.

“Take it all off,” he told the barber proudly.

The barber sectioned Christian’s hair into four massive ponytails and, with a few snips, the long locks were gone. In their place was a fresh buzz cut and a beaming smile.

Christian was donating 12 inches of his hair to Wigs for Kids, a non-profit organization that provides hair replacement systems for children who have lost their hair due to chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and other medical issues.

Holding the bags of hair in his hands, Christian finally explained why he endured years of teasing without a word of complaint.

“I can handle some teasing,” Christian said. “But sick kids shouldn’t have to handle feeling ugly.”

In the end, the boy who was mocked for looking like a girl revealed his true reflection to the world. He didn’t look like a girl—he looked like a hero.