Boy bullied for costume bravely returns to school to prove bullies shouldn't win
It’s painful to be ridiculed for something you worked hard for.
And it’s even more painful if you thought it was something amazing or would bring smiles to people’s faces.
It is true that we cannot please everyone, but at the same time, it’s not right to bully someone with unnecessary and invalid criticism.
Evan Struckman was excited about Halloween.
That year, he and his mom prepared something special out of a simple ensemble. In a series of Facebook posts from his mom Jill Struckman, the then 10-year-old can be seen sporting a pair of oversized tinted glasses.
His hair was brushed cleanly to one side and he was looking extra dapper in his dress shirt, pinstriped vest, sleek jeans, and stylish shoes. He also has a mustache and a goatee, and even if he has an ID, you can easily tell what he was dressed up as just by a glance.
Evan decided to be Tony Stark that year.
His ensemble is similar to one of the most iconic superheroes of contemporary history. Iron Man, played by Robert Downey Jr., is known to be a dashing genius gentleman who’s moonlighting as an Earth defender. So it’s not surprising that Evan wanted to be like him.
He was so excited that day that Jill shared with TODAY that they had a hard time working on his makeup just because he was smiling so much all the time.
Tingnan ang post na ito sa Instagram
She said that he even sprinted to the bus that morning so he could show off his costume to his classmates.
Twenty minutes later, Jill received a call from the school office.
Evan, who was so excited about that year’s Halloween party, decided not to keep the costume. The person on the other line said Evan was with them and he was “really, really, upset.”
Tingnan ang post na ito sa Instagram
In another post, she shared that Evan’s hair was not brushed anymore. His makeup is all washed off. He was also not wearing his Stark Industries badge. His eyes were puffy too.
All the while, Evan kept on apologizing for dismantling his costume.
“He kept saying, ‘we worked so hard on it,’” Jill said to TODAY “He was really thinking about how I would feel, which tells you a lot about him.”
Apparently, Evan was made fun of on the bus. Other kids were telling him that he looked stupid. Evan was so excited and hopeful, but later that day, he was just embarrassed.
After a heartfelt conversation, Evan decided to go back to school in his costume.
He was scared but his little heart mustered the courage so Evan can stand up for himself. Jill said that despite the earlier teasing, Evan’s day was great.
“He was so proud of himself. It was absolutely a defining moment in his life. If he hadn’t gone back, it would have broken his spirit.” She said to TODAY.
Upon posting the photo, the world made Evan feel that he was not alone.
They sent messages of support to the boy and praised him for his creativity, enthusiasm, and courage. Evan proved that being a hero all starts in the same way – being there and showing up for yourself.
We hope that he had a great Halloween party this year!
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Source: Facebook – Jill Stahl Struckman, TODAY, Instagram – @marvel