A heartbroken mother took her own life after her daughter also died due to the cruel treatment she endured from bullies.
Stephanie Site had spoken out about the impact bullying had on her 14-year-old daughter Vera Marie Appedu.
Only a few weeks ago, Stephanie spoke to her local Staten Island newspaper about the dire consequences of bullying following the death of her teenage daughter.
At the time, Stephanie heavily condemned those who had targeted her daughter as she lamented the lack of action taken by the school to protect Vera.
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She said: “They broke my kid. They broke her spirit. She looked at herself and believed what they said. That hurts that someone could have the power to crush a person’s spirit.”
Stephanie’s friend Janet also told the Staten Island Advance that her children had been bullied too.
She said: “There’s a big, big problem on Staten Island. I’m trying to pick up where Stephanie left off.
Janet said she is now “trying to make this a movement. Literally, an entire family just died,” after her friend took her own life.
Vera died on December 1, 2020. Her mother then took her own life on March 6 this year.
“The bullying, or fun, it doesn’t stop at three o’clock. It continues all night on social media. In my case it was intense negativity being thrown at her.”
Stephanie claimed that the teens who bullied Vera would tell her to kill herself.
Vera come out as bisexual in July, shortly before she started attending high school, and also came on the receiving end of bullying because of this, her mother said.
Stephanie filed a complaint against the school and the Archdiocese of New York, in Manhattan Supreme Court., accusing them of negligence and failure to stop the harassment endured by Vera.
The mother was frustrated with the lack of action taken by the school.
In the US, if you or someone you know needs help, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988.
In the UK, the Samaritans is available 24/7 if you need to talk. You can contact them for free by calling 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or head to the website to find your nearest branch. You matter.
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