Former President George H.W. Bush's newly-bald head[1] was revealed Wednesday, and now he's opening up[2] about why he took it all off.


Bush shaved his head this week to show solidarity with Patrick, the 2-year-old son of a member of his security detail who lost his hair during treatment for leukemia.



Members of Bush's Secret Service detail also showed their support by going bald.


“A lot of the agents shaved their head,” Bush said on the Today show[5] . “I said, ‘Well why not me?’ It was the right thing to do.”


NBC reports[6] Patrick's parents Alexandra and Jon, whose last name has been withheld at the family's request, released a statement on the gesture.


“We are humbled and honored by the support and generosity that President and Mrs. Bush and our Secret Service family have shown towards our son... and are so very grateful for the outpouring of love and support from all over the country," the couple said.



Patrick's parents weren't the only ones moved by Bush's actions. Former First Lady Barbara Bush said she was "shocked, surprised and thrilled" over her husband's bald head.


"I think he looks beautiful and looks younger," she told NBC.[7]


Click here[8] for more from NBC. For more information on Patrick and his battle with cancer, click here[9] .



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  • Former President George H. W. Bush wears red stripped socks as he sits in a wheelchair during an event in the East Room at the White House, July 15, 2013 in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)




  • This June 12, 2013 photo provided by the Office of George H. W. Bush, shows former president Bush at the family's compound in Kennebunkport, Maine. (AP Photo/Office of President George H. W. Bush)




  • Former President George H. W. Bush, in a pair of red and white socks, participates in an award ceremony with President Barack Obama for the 5,000th Daily Point of Light Award ceremony in the East Room of the White House of the White House in Washington, Monday, July 15, 2013. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)




  • FILE - In this April 25, 2013 file photo, former President George H.W. Bush, wears pink socks as he is seated in a wheelchair at the dedication of the George W. Bush Presidential Library on the campus of Southern Methodist University in Dallas. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)




  • Former President George H.W. Bush crosses his red white and blue socked feet during the unveiling ceremony of former President George W. Bush, his son, and former first lady Laura Bush's portraits, Thursday, May 31, 2012, in the East Room of the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)




  • In this photo taken Wednesday, April 17, 2013, former President George H.W. Bush wears American flag socks as he presents roses to the new Houston Texans cheerleaders during a ceremony introducing the new squad at the team's NFL football training facility in Houston. (AP Photo/Houston Chronicle, Smiley N. Pool)