Parents of Destiny Gleason say she killed herself after months of bullying

WARRENTON, Mo. ---  A 14-year-old Missouri girl who took her own life last week was bullied relentlessly by her classmates, according to her parents.

Stephanie Clark said her family recently moved to Warrenton, Mo., and that her 14-year-old daughter, Destiny, was just like any other eighth grader trying to get used to a new school in a new town.

“She wanted everybody to like her and she wanted to like everybody else,” Clark said.

Clark said from the beginning the transition was difficult extremely difficult for Destiny, who complained often that her classmates at Black Hawk Middle school were bullying her.

She started to retreat from some her favorite activities, which included painting, singing, and figure skating, according to her mother.

Clark and her husband Kurtis said they tried talking with their daughter, introducing therapy, and even considered homeschooling.

“We felt very helpless,” Kurtis said. “We talked to her and talked to her and talked to her. And just trying to get her to understand that it’s, you know, let it roll off your back. “

Destiny’s parents say the school year was like a roller coaster — things would improve, then get worse, and then improve again. They said everything escalated about two weeks ago, when the bullying led to a fight at school. Later that week, just hours before they were scheduled to meet with another specialist, her parents said they found her in her room.

She tried to hang herself from a pull up bar in her bedroom, according to her parents.

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Family members said they rushed Destiny to a hospital, where they initially believed she could survive but a few days later, she passed away.

Warrenton County R-3 School administrators would not comment on Destiny's case or individual students and allegations related to them, citing student privacy rights.

"The district takes all bullying accusations seriously, investigates all reports and follows district policies when looking into bullying situations,"  Superintendent Jim Chandler said in a statement.

Chandler also said Destiny’s school has an award winning bullying hotline that allows students to report incidents anonymously to administrators.

The principal at Black Hawk Middle School sent a note home to parents this week sharing the news of Destiny’s death, offering their condolences to family and friends, and reminding parents about counselors available to help students grieve.

Outside the family’s home, a small memorial is building. Friends and strangers continue to stop by and leave a gift -- often, in the theme of butterflies.

“Everybody started saying, ‘Fly high, Destiny,’” her mother said. ”And it caught on.”

The Clarks even got matching tattoos on their wrists with an image of her heartbeat at the hospital.
They hope by sharing Destiny’s story, another child’s life will be spared.

“We’re trying to make the best of everything and hoping we can make an impact so other kids won’t feel the way that she did,” her mother said.