Mom’s new mission honors Aubreigh Wyatt after MS Coast teen died by suicide over bullying
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The death of Aubreigh Wyatt
The death by suicide of 13-year-old Aubreigh Wyatt has focused national attention on South Mississippi, with widespread calls for justice and anti-bullying enforcement.
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Heather Wyatt is trying to keep it together.
She wants 13-year-old daughter Aubreigh Wyatt’s death by suicide to mean something. She wants the bullying, in and out of school, online and in person, to stop. She wants to help children and parents dealing with bullies.
A teacher as well as a mom, she wants students to thrive and to get help if they fall into despair. Aubreigh had seen therapists in the past and was on a wait list for therapy when her mother found her dead in her room on Labor Day morning, Sept. 4.
Wyatt attributes Aubreigh’s death to bullying she endured from 5th to 8th grade. The Ocean Springs Middle School student was popular, smart, kind and beautiful, with a close group of friends. But a small number of students, mostly girls but not always the same ones, targeted her, bullying her at school, after hours and on social media.
Wyatt has taken to TikTok to spread a personal message about how Aubreigh’s suicide has devastated her and her two surviving children, 6-year-old Ryker and 15-year-old Taylor. Her daughter and son even choose to participate in some of the videos. She now has more than 172,000 followers.
Wyatt is leveraging her following to raise money for her newly formed Aubreigh Wyatt Foundation, devoted to bringing awareness to, and eventually supporting programs on, teen suicide, bullying and mental health.
“I think Aubrey did affect so many people because it became like, ‘OK, wait, this is the girl next door. This is the girl that’s friends with everyone. This is the girl that is sociable and liked. What went wrong?
“ . . . Maybe we need to check in on everyone. And not just the kid sitting at the lunch table alone.”
Teen’s suicide devastates her Ocean Springs family
Heather and her daughter talked about the bullying. Aubreigh’s strong faith in God helped her cope. There also were periods when she was not bullied, but then the taunts would start up again. Her mom assured her, “This gets better.”
Heather Wyatt did not want to share details about the bullying. She has an attorney, Trevor Rockstadt of Gulfport, who is investigating what happened. Rockstadt sat in on her interview with the Sun Herald to make sure the conversation didn’t veer into details of the lawsuit he’s preparing over Aubreigh’s death.
Responding to a question on TikTok, Wyatt said she saw no signs that Aubreigh was suicidal. In fact, Aubreigh said the night before she died that she wanted a vanity for Christmas and put two in her mom’s online Amazon shopping cart, where Heather Wyatt found them after her daughter was gone.
Labor Day morning was a typical one — except that Aubreigh had not cranked down the air conditioning during the night as she usually did. Her mother got hot while working out and went to turn down the thermostat. She decided to check on Aubreigh in her room.
After opening the door, she screamed. It wasn’t a scream older daughter Taylor had heard before. She came running. They told Ryker to stay out. Heather Wyatt tried, fruitlessly to revive her daughter, who had died hours earlier.
Aubreigh was a “mama bear” to her brother and best friend to Taylor, only 21 months older. Wyatt and her children immediately started therapy.
Wyatt also took medical leave from her job as a third grade teacher at Oak Park Elementary in Ocean Springs, a job she loved. The family has gotten through their first Christmas and the six-month mark of Aubreigh’s death.
“We’re coping,” Heather Wyatt said. “It is day to day. I mean, some days, we cry, and then some days, we kind of get through it. I’m thankful we’re very close.”
Wyatt returned to work three weeks after Aubreigh’s death. She needed to occupy her mind. In retrospect, it was a mistake. She kept getting called to the superintendent’s office, she said, after school officials learned she had hired a lawyer. The district also rejected various requests to honor Aubreigh, she said, although tributes were held right after she died.
Wyatt went out on leave again, then resigned her job Feb. 15. She now works in an office and is relieved to be away from the school district, where she felt unsupported and disrespected.
Superintendent Mike Lindsey told the Sun Herald that he could not address specifics of Wyatt’s claims. He said in an email that the district “continues to extend its deepest condolences and support to the Wyatt family.”
He also said student memorials are permitted but must meet district guidelines and procedures. “Our objective,” Lindsey’s email said, “is to ensure equitable treatment for all students, be respectful of the family and friends, and maintain an environment conducive to learning.”
Aubreigh Wyatt birthday celebration planned for beach
Grief comes in waves. A song, a picture, the things that remind Wyatt and her children of Aubreigh trigger unexpected tears.
Sunday will be tough. It would have been Aubreigh’s 14th birthday. She loved her birthday parties, the bigger the better. She didn’t want anyone to be left out.
Wyatt planned a party for 50 at the beach for Aubreigh’s 13th birthday, then found herself in a last minute scramble to pick up more pizza, chips and drinks. More than 200 people attended.
“She just liked big and extravagant,” Wyatt said. Along those lines, her mom has rented a billboard that will wish Aubreigh a “happy heavenly birthday.” Wyatt said, “She would love something like that.”
Sunday’s celebration of Aubreigh’s life will also be at the beach. There will be cupcakes, balloons and some of Aubreigh’s favorite songs.
“It’s hard for us,” Wyatt said, “but I know it’s hard for her friends, too.”
On Sundays after church, the family visits Aubreigh’s grave, which they decorate for each season. Heather has a heartbreaking TikTok video that shows Ryker taking Aubreigh a Valentine’s Day bouquet while she was at her desk in her room, followed by a second clip of him putting a bouquet on her grave this year.
“Rest in peace, my beautiful,” Wyatt wrote with one video. “You deserved the world but the world did not deserve you.”
This story was originally published March 14, 2024 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Mom’s new mission honors Aubreigh Wyatt after MS Coast teen died by suicide over bullying."
