Tragic loss: Actress Clare McCann mourns son
She blasted the school system, saying, “This was not his fault. He was let down by the schooling system as he suffered horrendous amounts of bullying. Now I humbly beg of you to help me preserve his life and help me fight against this inhumane landslide of child suicides caused by unchecked bullying by schools and teachers.”
Within two days, Clare says he was already in tears, begging her to stop the bullies. He endured severe abuse, including an incident where classmates allegedly tried to drown him during a school camp. “When he told me, I was mortified that the school hadn’t called me,” Clare said. She immediately demanded a meeting with school officials.
Physical attacks
The bullying went beyond physical attacks — Atreyu was humiliated when bullies drew on his body and tormented by constant harassing phone calls. Clare recounted, “They just destroyed him. And in a moment of immense pain, he just did something, because I think he just didn’t know what else to do.”
In early April, after Atreyu told her, “If he had to go to school, he’d kill himself,” Clare pulled him out. Away from his tormentors and with professional help, she believed he was starting to heal. “I just wish I knew what he was thinking,” she said.
Despite numerous warnings to the school — at least 10 times between February and April — and notifications to the Department of Education and Children’s Services, Clare says no effective action was taken.
She holds medical records, psychologist reports, a formal PTSD diagnosis, and emails as proof of her repeated appeals for help.
Though Atreyu didn’t leave a note, Clare shared that they often spoke about the afterlife. “We’d talk about the future, about heaven, how we’d like to come back and do things together. Those were his wishes and dreams, and I can’t fail him now,” she said. Clare hopes cryopreserving Atreyu’s body could someday reunite them.
