A mom and her six sons are inspiring others with their dedication and compassion for others.\u00a0 Phoebe Kannisto could be considered a supermom.\u00a0 She is the mother to six sons and one daughter.\u00a0 Her sons, Andre who is 10, identical twins Silas and Emerson who are eight, and fraternal triplets Herbie, Reed, and Dexter who are five, have shown that bullies are no match to doing the right thing.\u00a0 Just having seven kids is not what makes her a supermom; it is the lessons that she is teaching them.<\/p>\n
The Cheektowaga, New York natives collectively grew out and donated over 17-feet of hair. Ranging from one to five years, some of the boys\u2019 hair took longer than others to get it to the length needed for donating. Nonetheless, it was a family effort and they all waited to get it cut together.<\/p>\n
Phoebe Kannisto had been growing and donating her hair since she was a teenager. She did not get the notion to do it with her sons until one of her friend\u2019s sons had passed away due to cancer. \u201cThree years ago a friend of mine lost her son to cancer and he was also a twin and very similar in age to my twins.\u00a0 So on the first anniversary of his passing my three oldest sons donated their hair in his memory and that\u2019s kind of how it started,\u201d she said in an interview with ABC News. And, the rest is history.<\/p>\n
Her husband, Eric Kannisto, works as a cancer research scientist prompting her even more to instill this want in her family to donate hair to children, specifically those battling with cancer. Having younger children involved, Kannisto understands that that idea can be somewhat dense or hard to grasp but she claims that the boys view in as positive manor as possible.\u00a0 She ensures them that they are doing the right thing by helping children who are sick. \u00a0\u201cIt makes me feel a bit better about myself knowing that I can do something to make somebody else happy,\u201d said one son in an interview with ABC News. The children\u2019s outlook is centered on the idea of putting someone else in high spirits.<\/p>\n
As if this story could not get anymore charitable, the hair salon that chopped the family\u2019s hair, Hizair Hair Salon, refused to take any payment. \u00a0The inspired stylists claimed that since they were donating hair than they were going to donate their time. It was even said that some of the stylists were working overtime but still did not want any form of payment. The charity that the family donated to was the Children with Hair Loss foundation; it is a nonprofit organization that provides hair replacements for children who have medically- related hair loss. \u00a0The organization strives on donating hair replacements to children who are affected with absolutely no cost.\u00a0 In 2016 alone Children with Hair Loss was able to help around 500 children.<\/p>\n
Throughout the process of growing their hair some of the boys were said to be having a hard time at school.\u00a0 They were faced with a few bullies that did not agree with their long hair.\u00a0 Some had harder times than others.\u00a0 Kannisto claimed that there were some hard nights that included a few tears because even after explaining the purpose of the long hair to the bullies, they remained to push limits. The boys, despite the bullies and their comments, completed their goal. Her sons prevailed, coming out of the process with \u201cthicker skin\u201d and good hearts.<\/p>\n
In attendance to the hair cutting was Marah Taylor, the youngest daughter of the Kannisto family, who is only two-years-old. \u201cShe watched in awe, her brothers are great role models,\u201d said Phoebe Kannisto in an interview with HuffPost.\u00a0 The Kannisto family is already planning on donating again so that Marah Taylor can participate.\u00a0 The brothers promised their sister that they would do it again just for her. The brothers are already getting excited about the next time they can donate.\u00a0 They are throwing around bets and estimating how long they think it will take until their hair is at the right length to get cut.<\/p>\n
The efforts of the Kannisto family are nothing short of admiring.\u00a0 Phoebe, her sons and Marah Taylor, show a level of commitment and kindness that others strive for. Cancer is a hard pill to swallow and effects so many. \u201cCancer hits close to home for everybody, everybody knows someone who\u2019s affected by cancer,\u201d said Kannisto in an interview with ABC News. Something that is so looked over, such as hair, could mean so much in the eyes of someone else.\u00a0 It\u2019s reassuring that children who have not even reached their teen years yet have such an ability to care for others without expecting anything in return.\u00a0 They just want to give.<\/p>\n
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