One Pennsylvania man has gone viral for offering queer Pride goers what they needed most: good old-fashioned dad hugs.

Prior to Pittsburgh's annual Pride parade, Scott Dittman of Karns City, Pennsylvania, learned that a friend was attending Pittsburgh Pride with the advocacy group Free Mom Hugs, reports CNN News.

Determined to join the cause, Dittman ordered a shirt online that said "Free Dad Hugs" and offered passersby at the June 9 parade just that: free hugs, dad-style.

Dittman, who told CBS News that he's married to a woman and has two children, thought the shirt might be a fun way to show his support for the LGBTQ community. However, he didn't anticipate the emotional response from so many queer Pride goers, who ran eagerly into his arms.

"There's this young woman just with tears in her eyes and she threw her arms around me and thanked me and thanked me and thanked me," Dittman told CNN. "Obviously, I wasn't gonna be the one to let go first. But that's when I realized that even though we headed down there to spread some joy and have some smiles and things like that that it was maybe going to turn out a little bit differently."

He reportedly gave out more than 700 hugs in the span of two-and-a-half hours.

In a Facebook post after Pittsburgh Pride, Dittman encouraged parents of LGBTQ children to accept their kids for who they are:

Imagine that, parents. Imagine that your child feels SO LOST FROM YOU that they sink into the arms of a complete stranger and sob endlessly just because that stranger is wearing a shirt offering hugs from a dad. Think of the depths of their pain. Try to imagine how deep those cuts must be. Please don't be the parent of a child that has to shoulder that burden. I met WAY too many of them, of all ages, today. And if by chance anyone knows these folks, please let them know they can reach out any time they need a surrogate dad to talk to. I'll be there.

We're not crying, you're crying!