As a parent of two, I thought I had developed a pretty strong tolerance for chaos. My oldest child is 19, responsible, and away at college. My younger son, Jax, is 16 and very different. He has bright pink hair, piercings, combat boots, and a leather jacket that immediately makes people judge him before they know anything about him. But despite the comments and assumptions from strangers, I’ve always known he has a good heart.

Last Friday night proved it in a way I will never forget.

It was freezing outside when Jax went for one of his usual late walks. A while later, I heard crying coming from across the street near the park. When I looked outside, I saw Jax sitting on a bench bent over something in his arms. I ran outside and realized he was holding a newborn baby wrapped in only a thin blanket. The infant was ice cold. Jax had already called 911 and taken off his own jacket to keep the baby warm, even though he was shivering himself.

The paramedics later said the baby’s temperature had dropped dangerously low and that Jax likely saved the child’s life. The next morning, a police officer came to thank him personally. The baby belonged to the officer, whose wife had recently died. A frightened teenage babysitter had panicked and abandoned the infant outside while trying to get help.

Since then, people at school no longer focus on Jax’s appearance. Now they simply know him as the kid who sat in a snowstorm protecting a helpless baby. And as his parent, I will never forget that moment either.

Search Results for: A Simple Makeover Helped One Woman See Herself in a Completely New Way