There’s nothing more tragic than a child losing a parent, but unfortunately, it’s more common than we’d like to think.

It’s estimated that around 1.5 million children in the United States – that’s around 5% – lose one or both parents by the age of 15.

11-year-old Isabella Pieri is one of these young people. Her mom died from a rare brain illness in 2016.

Philip, Isabella’s father, knew that he now had to take on mom duties as well as being a dad. Despite working long hours at a convenience store in American Fork, Utah, he made the time to help his daughter pull through.

Isabella quickly became independent, but there were some things that her mom had simply done the best.

The biggest task that Isabella was struggling with was fixing her hair.

Like most dads, Philip himself didn’t know the ins and outs of female hairstyling.

Speaking to NBC News, he admitted:

“It would get so tangled up — I didn’t know how to take care of it. And then, finally, she got mad at me and wouldn’t let me touch her hair anymore, so I said, ‘The only way we’re gonna get that big of a mess out of it is just to cut it all off and start all over again.’”

Though Philip tried hard, he realized that taking care of long hair was something he just couldn’t master.

In the end, it all got too much – and Isabella had her long hair cut short.

When her hair started to grow back, she started to wear it in a simple ponytail, hoping to avoid tangling.

But what Isabella and her dad didn’t know is that someone had noticed the little girl’s tangled hair – and she wanted to help.

Tracy Dean, a bus driver for the Alpine School District, drove the school bus on Isabella’s route.

Not wanting to embarrass Isabella, Tracy kept her thoughts to herself. But one day, Isabella noticed Tracy braiding another girl’s hair before school.

Though she was nervous, not knowing much about Tracy, Isabella approached her and asked if she could do her hair, too.

For Tracy, the moment came as a relief.

She recalled:

“I was just thinking to myself, ‘Oh thank you, Lord.’”

When Tracy learned that Isabella had lost her mom, she was even more determined to help the little girl out. And so a routine was formed – every morning, Tracy would style Isabella’s hair however she liked it.

Thanks to Tracy, Isabella’s hair is now long and tangle-free.

Tracy said she made time to teach Isabella about basic hair care, adding:

“I also taught her how to brush her hair. She’d get on the bus and she’d say, ‘I brushed my hair. Does it look good?’” she said. “I’ll say, ‘You did awesome.’”

Tracy could relate to Isabella’s story more than most. A mom of four herself, she had been diagnosed with breast cancer four years ago. of four diagnosed with breast cancer years ago.

She had worried about her kids, knowing that they would find it incredibly difficult to lose their mom.

Tracy and Isabella’s relationship goes beyond hairstyles. Isabella has found a mom figure in Tracy, and the pair are now very close.

You can learn more about this heartwarming story in the video below.

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Source: NBC News, My Positive Outlooks, NCBI