Texas dad chooses act of kindness toward bully who was messing with his son

A Texas father decided to take an unusual approach when his 8-year-old son was being bullied by an older boy at his school.

Aubrey Fontenot of Houston chose an act of kindness that not only stopped the bullying situation, but it helped to forge a new friendship between the two boys.

Tamarion, 11, was envious of Fontenot's son, Jordon, because he had clean clothes to wear to school, the Houston Chronicle reported.

"He [Tamarion] said he was getting made fun of by the other kids. They said his shoes were cheap and his clothes were dirty," Aubrey Fontenot told the Chronicle.

Fontenot soon learned that Tamarion's family had suffered some hardships and were homeless so he took the boy shopping for new clothes and set up a GoFundMe account to help Tamarion and his family.

"I figured I could help both him and my son, and better the situation," Fontenot said.

What's the story?

Fontenot said his son, Jordon, was being bullied by Tamarion and that the problem had been ongoing, the Chronicle reported.

"I asked my son about it and he told me the boy was messing with him and was too rough," Fontenot told the newspaper.

Fontenot went to the school for help with the situation. He was assured that the school would handle it, but then another incident occurred about a week later.

This time he went back to the school and ended up speaking with Tamarion's mother. She explained the family's situation to him.

"I decided I wanted to talk to the boy myself, and his mom gave me permission," Fontenot told the Chronicle.

Fontenot explained to Tamarion that he's "a great person and this [situation] doesn't make him bad."

"I also told him that no matter what's going on, you have to walk around with your head up and chest up. This world is tough," he continued. "You can't let what people say or do bring your self-confidence down."

A week later, Fontenot took Tamarion shopping for new clothes.

What did Fontenot tell his own son?

Fontenot used the opportunity as a teaching moment for his son.

"I told my son that if you put good things out in the world, good things will come back to you," he said.

What about the GoFundMe campaign?

Fontenot started a GoFundMe campaign to help Tamarion and his family six days ago with a goal of $7,000.

On Wednesday, the campaign had raised more than $26,000 from 962 donors.