Teen’s suicide tragedy
Family has their lives torn apart
HEARTBROKEN parents who returned home to find their daughter dead are trying to understand why 16-year-old Kaitlyn Ros suddenly took her own life.
Stanthorpe’s Eric and Juanita Ros have had their “hearts ripped out” in the wake of their youngest daughter’s death.
On November 8, Mr and Mrs Ros were driving back from a hospital appointment in Toowoomba when they tried to call home.
When Kaitlyn didn’t answer the phone, they rushed back to discover their beautiful girl had taken her own life.
Stanthorpe police officer in charge Gerard Brady said detectives were treating the death as a suicide.
Kaitlyn’s tragedy is the second reported instance of a Southern Downs teenager taking their own life this year.
The other was 14-year-old Scots PGC student Amy “Dolly” Everett, whose death in January shocked Australia and sparked the Queensland Anti-Cyberbullying Taskforce.
While Kaitlyn’s family have called for an urgent coronial inquest to determine the circumstances surrounding her death, they believe she also suffered bullying and harassment at school.
“Our beautiful girl is gone she can never be replaced. Our lives will never be the same because someone felt it was okay to bully,” Mr Ros said.
While the family struggle to understand the suffering Kaitlyn faced, her last words to them remain to be seen.
Five individual letters addressed to each of Kaitlyn’s relatives are locked away in a police report that is currently being prepared for the coroner.
‘‘ KIDS, PLEASE TELL YOUR PARENTS IF YOU ARE BEING BULLIED. ERIC ROS
The oldest of six siblings and closest to Kaitlyn, Shardae said her sister’s death could have been prevented.
“I was going through my text messages the other night and she had been telling me she was getting bullied and the school wasn’t doing anything about it,” she said.
“In hindsight you could probably see something was going wrong, but she was such a loving and caring person.”
Mr Ros took to social media, begging other children to speak up about their troubles.
“Kids, please tell your parents if you are being bullied,” he said.
“We love you, we want to help you. You are needed in our lives.
“Please, please report it to someone you are being bullied. If they don’t listen, tell your parents.”
A spokeswoman for the Department of Education said the school was deeply saddened by the loss.
“Specialist counselling support is being provided through services organised by the school, and we encourage anyone affected to reach out for assistance,” she said.
“During this time, we ask everyone to respect the different ways in which individuals express grief, and understand the significant impact such a loss has on our community.”