Yahoo News 'The world is a better place with you in it' - Grieving parents' message to anyone who has experienced bullying
The parents of a 16-year-old girl who tragically died in July are reassuring anyone who has suffered bullying that the "world is a better place with them in it" as they mourn the loss of their daughter.
Kibi Wade (Barrett) was found deceased at her home in Caistor on Wednesday, July 24. A crowd of mourners dressed in her favourite colour, purple, paid their respects to the "beautiful, bubbly and silly" teen at her funeral service at St James' Church, Louth on Tuesday, September 3.
Speaking at the wake, Kibi's mum Michelle Barrett and stepmum Michelle Gardner urged anyone who is experiencing bullying to speak out about what they are going through.
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Stepmum Michelle told Grimsby Live: "If you are being bullied, you may get told by the bullies, 'don't say a word', but you need to reach out and speak to someone. Confide in parents and bullying charities and helplines, or you could even speak to a church minister. They will listen.
"It could become a full-time job dealing with the overwhelming response we're getting from other people who have been bullied. It's clear that bullying doesn't just affect those who are just leaving school, but even those in their thirties and forties, who still have mental health issues because of bullies."
Mum Michelle said the support the family have received from other people has been "incredible" in the wake of Kibi's death.
"People have been amazing. We couldn't have hoped for more support, it's just been incredible," she said.
"I hope more than anything that any other person out there who is struggling, does reach out and get support, because you should never get that desperate and you should never listen to those horrible things that people say because we're all important in this world, we're all precious, and the world is a better place with you in it."
The couple have set up a website, Kibi's Memory, to tell Kibi's story and signpost people who are struggling with their mental health or being bullied to resources.
Stepmum Michelle continued: "Going forward we want to work with anti-bullying charities to signpost young people to where they can get help, and ideally, we want to become a resource for bullying and set up some campaign for change, even to the law, to make it a criminal offence to bully or cyber-bully someone."
"Unfortunately it will cost money to keep the website going, and that is a concern. We certainly don't want to neglect it, we want to carry it forward for years to come. If we could get some financial support or a sponsor, we could really drive it forward and speak at schools and keep delivering that message," Kibi's mum said.
You can visit the website by clicking here or the Facebook page by clicking here.
