TRAGEDY NO PARENT SHOULD ENDURE

JACK Beasley’s parents will never really know why their son was fatally stabbed on a night out on the Gold Coast. It’s a question they’ve gone over hundreds of times since they became the reluctant poster-family for what can go so horribly wrong when kids carry knives.

But what they know for sure is that something has to change so another family doesn’t go through the same hell.

The Gold Coast’s knife crime statistics are cold and unforgiving, as statistics often can be.

In five years, Coast knife crime has spiked 63 per cent. Half were committed by people under 25.

The shocking reality is five of the nine alleged Gold Coast murders in the past year involved knives.

Harrison Geppert, 17, Jack Beasley, 17, and Cian English, 19, all died after being stabbed.

These boys are so much more than the cold statistics.

“You sit there and wonder where his life would go, but it’s only 12 months in, but I guess in 10 years’ time we’ll still (be wondering),” Brett Beasley heartbreakingly told the Bulletin about his son.

While police say the number of teens carrying knives is on the rise, stopping the trend is a complex and multifaceted task.

Through their grief, the Beasleys are trying their best to turn tragedy into change though a simple, grass roots approach – education.

Their foundation is moving to talk to kids as young as 12 in schools, before they get to the point of carrying knives.

Jack’s mum and dad know nothing will ever bring their boy back but 12 months after his death, they’re ready to try to change things for their son, his mates and the future of our city.