For Hannah Combs, high school was supposed to be a clean slate from the bullying she had already endured during elementary school. Unfortunately, just a few weeks into her freshman year, the bullying was just starting back up again.
The 15-year-old was innocently standing outside of Harker Heights High School, in Killeen, Tx., talking with friends when a boy came up from behind her and poured super glue on top of her head. Hannah was taken to the school’s nurse’s office, but her father Christian took her to urgent care because of the intense pain.
Despite the incident, Hannah is handling the situation with incredible poise and positivity.
It was only at the urgent care that Hannah was diagnosed with first degree burns from the incident. The boy, however, was only given three days of in-school suspension.
Christian was shocked and angered by the school’s lack of action with the bully.
“I’m not going to pull my daughter out and uproot her from her life because of what this kid did to her,” Christian said. “That child that did this to her, uproot his life. He gave up the opportunity to go to Harker Heights when he committed the act.”
Even with her positivity and the amount of support she’s received, Hannah was terrified at the thought of losing her hair.
“I realized I lost my favorite thing about me. I loved my hair,” Hannah said. “My hair was the only thing I liked about myself, honestly. I lost it for no reason.”
However, the glue had done too much damage, and Hannah and her mother Jessica decided the only option was cutting off much of her long hair.
“It instantly started burning,” Hannah said. “It felt like my head was on fire. It was horrible.” She described the burn as feeling like a “sun burn times 10.”
A local hairstylist, Nikki, heard about what had happened to Hannah, and offered to cut and style her hair for free.
“Today I got to do something I’m proud of. I fixed a young girls hair who had something traumatic happen to her at school. Her hair had to be shaved on one side, so I made the best of a bad situation,” Nikki said.
And when Hannah’s mom made a Facebook group called ‘Justice for Hannah,’ the teen received an outpouring of support. Many even questioned the school’s reaction (or, lack thereof).
“It makes me want to help other people,” Hannah said. “There are people who couldn’t stand up for themselves but they talk to me about it. It makes me want to help. It’s amazing how many people are supporting me.”
All the support has made Hannah view this experience as an opportunity to grow. She now hopes to help others deal with their bully struggles.
“I want to make a difference. I would like people to stand up for themselves. No one deserves to be bullied — it’s not fair for anyone,” she said. “I’m just a normal kid with strong beliefs. When it comes to bullying, I stand up for people a lot because of it — but it’s worth it.
Can you believe how gracefully this girl handled being bullied? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
[Featured image credit: Facebook/Justice For Hannah]