Teen spends years growing 24-inch long hair after experiencing an empathetic moment at the beach

Sometimes, it's surprising how the purest form of empathy can be seen in children. Their brains may still be developing but their unfiltered love and compassion for others is something that even adults need to learn from. One such child is turning heads on the internet with his big-hearted gesture. Emilio Santana, a ninth-grader from Providence, Rhode Island never cut his hair for years after he was deeply moved by a heart-wrenching sight at the beach when he was in third grade, according to NBC affiliate WJAR. His strong-willed goal to grow long hair was to fulfill a wholesome cause.

Santana, a passionate wrestler, is a wrestling champion in his state within his age group and his coach couldn't be more proud of the teen's grit. "The moment he says he wants to do something, no matter how tough it is, no matter how many odds are stacked against him, he’s going to make sure he takes the steps required. He's going to seek that help and make sure he gets it done," the boy's coach David Gonzalez told the news channel. Not only in wrestling, but Santana seemed to be that determined and driven in life too - even as a little boy. 

When he was in the third grade, Santana encountered a little girl at the beach and it turned into an empathetic moment for him. "She was going to the water and took her hat off and her hair went with it," the teen explained. "You could see she was sad, and felt embarrassment and that kind of just stuck with me," he added. This moment left a lasting impression on the boy who wanted to "take action." When he knew that a simple act of not cutting his hair could benefit someone and bring a smile to their face, his mind was set on growing his long locks.

Maintaining long hair is no cakewalk and for a wrestler like Santana, it took effort. He would braid his hair during practices and matches. Also, it attracted some ridicule at his school which faded away over time as his teachers and classmates got used to it. "Even when I got some comments like, 'Boys shouldn’t have long hair' and stuff like that I decided as long as I get to see somebody smile and make their life better I wanted to do it," he pointed out. Finally, this August, Santana decided to cut his hair before stepping into his new school and also because he felt it was long enough to donate. The teen's mom who goes by Trophy Sutra shared his thoughtful gesture on Facebook.

Though he found it hard to part ways with his long curly locks, the teen was hoping to make someone's day brighter through donation. Santana contributed his 24-inch-long hair to Hair We Share, a non-profit that doesn't charge clients with medical complications for their wigs. But his act of kindness didn't end there! Santana decided to be an example and inspire more people to support this cause. For his birthday, the teen started a fundraiser, Emilio’s fundraiser for Hair We Share Inc., to bring in more contributions to facilitate Hair We Share's cause. "The fact that something so small, like, I can just regrow my hair, while others, it’s a very big thing for them. It just made me want to help one person at a time," he added.