A woman in Australia is raising money to cryogenically preserve her 13-year-old son’s body after he died by suicide following “months of brutal bullying,” according to the online fundraiser.
Clare McCann, an actor and filmmaker from New South Wales, launched the fundraiser Sunday, explaining that her son, Atreyu McCann, died Friday.
She wrote that her son “took his own life after months of horrific bullying at his public school.”
McCann said she repeatedly asked her son’s school and the Department of Education and Children’s Services to intervene, “but nothing was done. No one stepped in. And now, my beautiful boy is gone,” the fundraiser says.
A spokesperson for the New South Wales Department of Education said the agency was devastated to learn of the death.
McCann told 7News Sydney that from the moment her son started high school, he was subjected to bullying. Even after her son’s death, she said, no students were disciplined.
“None of them were suspended, none of them were expelled. I feel completely let down,” she told the Australian outlet.
Officials said the Education Department and the school had been working with the family and will team with authorities to understand the circumstances of the teen’s death.
McCann is seeking $300,000 Australian to preserve his body within the next seven days — “or the opportunity for him to live again will be lost forever.” Cryopreservation is the concept of freezing humans as soon as they die, with the hope of reviving them using future medicine.
“If we miss this window, we lose the chance for any future revival that science may offer. This is about hope and justice. Refusing to let my son’s story end in silence,” McCann wrote.
In the fundraiser, she said she planned to use the money for the “immediate cryopreservation and legal transportation,” medical and legal services for the procedure and a trust in her son’s name.
McCann said she wants to use the money to ensure “this never happens again.”
“Please help us preserve our beloved Atreyu and give his life the dignity and future that his school stole from him,” the fundraiser said.
Australia’s only cryogenics facility is on board to try.
“100% sure — we’re not certain. No guarantees. But there’s a reasonable probability,” Peter Tsolakides of Southern Cryonics told 7News.
According to the company’s website, its mission is to promote “scientifically based cryonic suspension as a credible option for life extension.” The website says cryonic suspension involves encasing a body, cooling it to a vitrified state over several days, placing it in a stainless-steel vessel and maintaining it long term in a liquid nitrogen storage environment to prevent the deterioration of tissues “for centuries if necessary.”
As of Tuesday afternoon, over $7,300 Australian had been raised.
McCann had shared an Instagram post over the weekend, announcing her son’s death.
“As my worst nightmare has come to life my child’s has been stolen. It breaks my heart beyond what words can compare to share that in a moment of unbearable pain Atreyu took his own life,” she wrote.
“This was not his fault. He was let down by the schooling system as he suffered horrendous amounts of bullying,” she continued. “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.”
McCann did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You can also call the network, previously known as the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, at 800-273-8255, text HOME to 741741 or visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional resources.
