7th Grader Told To 'Kill Yourself' In Yearbook Message

BUCKLEY, WA — A yearbook is supposed to be a positive thing: a book full of memories and handwritten messages like "have a good summer" or references to inside jokes between friends. But for one Buckley middle schooler, his yearbook was defaced by classmates with some of the worst words imaginable.

"Kill yourself," wrote one. "You should do the world a favor and die," penned another. One page in the book was filled with profane scrawl and symbols too awful to spell out here.

After the 13-year-old seventh grader at Glacier Middle School read those messages written in his 2017 yearbook, the teen — whose identity has not been released — went down to a local river intending to carry out the suicide. He even texted his mother "goodbye," according to reports.

Fortunately, his mother was able to find her son — sitting by the river in tears — before he could harm himself. When the teen's mother discovered why her son had gone down such a dark road, she let the world know. She went on Facebook and posted a photo of the yearbook page and a message to anyone who wanted to listen.

"I am beside myself... how can people be so cruel...my son handed off his yearbook to be signed and this is what he had to see. He walked out of the lunch room and walked home and called me in tears. he has been bullied all year long, I'm sick of it being blown off. I'm Not leaving this school until they figure who wrote these horrific disgusting things. MEAN PEOPLE SUCK," she wrote.

The post spread across the Internet quickly. It's been shared thousands of times and more than 2,300 have commented on her post.

Read the mother's Facebook post here (image contains graphic language)

The post resonated, perhaps, because school bullying is so widespread in the U.S. Stories of bullying, like what the Glacier Middle School student endured and some that end in death, are common. Here are just a few recent incidents.

• In Branford, Conn., the son of a firefighter who died after being hit by a train has been taunted to "go jump in front of a train like your dad"
• In Brooklyn, N.Y., immigrant students were bullied in the wake of President Donald Trump's election
• In Palatine, Ill., a student with special needs was bullied and sexually assaulted, and school staff stand accused of ignoring the problem
• In Montauk, N.Y., a teen committed suicide after being bullied over a girl he was involved with

The problem of bullying is so widespread, former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama in 2011 held a national conference to address the problem. Barack Obama said at the time that the purpose was to dispel the myth that bullying is some sort of rite of passage.

Watch: How You Can Prevent Your Children From Becoming Victims Of Bullying

"Bullying can have destructive consequences for our young people. And it’s not something we have to accept. As parents and students; teachers and communities, we can take steps that will help prevent bullying and create a climate in our schools in which all of our children can feel safe," he said in 2011.

Every state in the U.S. has either a bullying law, a statewide bullying policy, or both. The Washington state anti-bullying law requires each school district to adopt a policy that "prohibits the harassment, intimidation, or bullying of any student."

In Buckley, the White River School District is taking the yearbook incident seriously. The district released a statement Monday saying that it has been in touch with law enforcement to investigate the incident.

"As educators, we are devastated when something like this happens to any student. Our immediate concern is for the safety and well-being of the student involved, and school administration has been working closely with the student and their family from the beginning. This response has also included the involvement of local law enforcement. An incident like this affects us all. While we are dealing with this specific and personal case, we also face an awareness that we are not alone in dealing with the effects of bullying. This is an issue across the state, and the nation, and White River is not immune."

Patch has reached out to Buckley police for an update on the investigation, and we will update this story when we hear back.

There are resources for parents and teens dealing with bullying. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services operates the website stopbullying.gov, which is a great starting point for defining bullying and finding strategies to prevent it. The website also has a rundown of state laws against bullying, and offers online classes.

For teens or allies who are being bullied, the site teensagainstbullying.org offers solutions created by other teenagers. A sister site, kidsagainstbullying.org, is aimed at elementary and pre-teen students.

Image via Google Maps