Palm Harbor Teen Suicide Victim's Family Finds Purpose Amidst Grief

PALM HARBOR, FL — Cheryl Brown of Palm Harbor isn't sure how her family will cope during the holidays without her daughter's contagious laughter, quick wit and ability to light up a room with her smile.

Brown said her 16-year-old daughter, McKenna, was bright, talented, beautiful and, as the star goalie on her traveling hockey team, had a promising future playing college hockey.

"She was one of those people that everybody gravitated toward — just true sunshine," Cheryl Brown said.

McKenna Brown had every reason to live.

Nevertheless, just days before starting her senior year at East Lake High School, the teen, just a month shy of her 17th birthday, took her own life on Aug. 7.

Cheryl Brown and her husband, Hunter, aren't alone in their grief this holiday season.

According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, suicide is the second-leading cause of death among people ages 15 to 25 in the United States. Nearly 20 percent of high school students report serious thoughts of suicide and 9 percent have attempted to take their lives.

In 2021, 47,656 people in the U.S. killed themselves, up from 45,979 in 2020, said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A little over 14 percent of those taking their lives were in the 15- to 24-year-old age range, reported the CDC. The largest increase (8 percent) in the rate of suicides occurred among males ages 15-24. However, the rate of females committing suicide is catching up.

While female suicide rates in all age groups over 25 have declined in recent years, the CDC said they have generally increased for females ages 10 to 14 and 15 to 24.

The reasons for the rise, according to the National Institutes of Health, are the same reasons that drove the once-happy, carefree McKenna Brown to take her life — cyberbullying.

The ability to torment and taunt and quickly spread rumors through social media while providing anonymity for the antagonizer has elevated schoolyard bullying to a whole new level.

In her daughter's case, Cheryl Brown said the cyberbullying began when a humiliating photo of her daughter was circulated on social media and reached her classmates at East Lake High School.

Despite reporting the problem to the school district, Brown said the cyberbullying escalated. Following five days of hateful and harassing comments on various social media platforms along with text messages sent directly to McKenna, she ended her life.

"She was basically bullied to death," Hunter Brown said while making an appearance with his wife on the Dr. Phil show on Oct. 18.

"Sometime between 3:30 and 7 the next morning, she decided she couldn't take it anymore, and she took her own life," Cheryl Brown said. "I knew there was some boy drama that turned into hazing, but there were no red flags."

According to the NIH, cyberbullying has been on the rise with the increased use of the internet during the COVID-19 pandemic. But the links between cyberbullying and thoughts of suicide are less understood than the typical schoolyard bullying.

To understand the phenomenon better, NIH-funded researchers led by Dr. Ran Barzilay from the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia used data from more than 10,000 adolescents who reported experiencing or perpetrating cyberbullying, defined as “purposefully trying to harm another person or be mean to them online, in texts or group texts, or on social media (like Instagram or Snapchat).”

The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in June, found that adolescents who experienced cyberbullying were four times more likely to have thoughts of suicide or attempt suicide.

“At a time when young adolescents are spending more time online than ever before, this study underscores the negative impact that bullying in the virtual space can have on its targets,” Barzilay told the NIH. “It may be prudent for primary care providers to screen for cyberbullying routinely in the same way that they might screen for other suicide risk factors like depression. Parents and educators should also be aware of this risk factor.”

As the Browns and their other two children, McKenna's older brother, MacCallum, and her younger sister, McKinley, grappled with the reasons for McKenna's death, Cheryl Brown found unexpected support and solace in work as a general sales manager with PulteGroup's West Florida Division.

Several of her co-workers shared their own stories of loss due to suicide, including PulteGroup closing coordinator, Brianna Riscossa, whose older sister, Deanna, died by suicide three years ago.

Turning their grief into action, 58 PulteGroup employees and family members took part in the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s annual Tampa Bay Out of the Darkness Experience walk to raise funds and awareness at Al Lopez Field in Tampa on Dec. 3. In the process, they also raised $4,580 to assist in suicide prevention efforts.

In an emotional display, the PulteGroup team wore shirts sporting McKenna Brown's hockey uniform number, and released white doves in memory of the loved ones team members lost to suicide.

Riscossa and her family began participating in the walk following her sister's death. Riscossa now serves as a member of the Tampa walk organizing committee. Over their years of involvement, she and her family have raised nearly $15,000 to celebrate her sister's life.

“Our West Florida Division not only wanted to show support for our fellow team members and honor the loved ones they have lost to suicide, but we also wanted to be a part of the solution,” said Sean Strickler, West Florida division president. “The grieving process never really stops, but the money raised through the walk and our sponsorship will help create awareness and support survivors of suicide loss.”

“We miss our daughter every day,” said Cheryl Brown. “I’m grateful for PulteGroup’s support because events like this walk help save lives and spread hope. While we know McKenna is watching over us, our goal is to raise awareness of the warning signs so that no other family has to go through so much pain. I just don't want her death to be in vain."

PulteGroup West Florida Division members will take part in one of AFSP’s upcoming lunch-and-learn events to better recognize the warning signs of suicide. Counseling is also available to team members through PulteGroup’s Employee Assistance Program.

If you or someone you know is considering suicide, contact the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention Hotline at (800) 273-8255 or dial 988.