MENTOR, Ohio — A group of concerned community members came together to find ways to stop bullying in Mentor schools.
When a child is bullied, the impacts can be detrimental. For Janis Mohat, they were forever.
Janis's son, Eric Mohat, was 17 and attended Mentor schools, where his mom said he was targeted by two kids in his math class.
“They called him f****t, queer, loser, waste of human skin,” Janis continued, “On the 150th day, the star baseball player told him, "Eric, why don't you go home and shoot yourself? It's not like anyone would care.'”
Eric committed suicide in 2007, and now Janis works every day to use that loss to make a difference.
“What I am hoping for is that people will hear this message and stop saying, 'boys will be boys' and, 'girls will be girls,'” said Janis.
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, during the 2021–22 school year, about 19% of students between the ages of 12 to 18 dealt with bullying.
“We've brought together the community to try and help address the bullying issue within the schools for it's been going on for decades and not much has been done to try and fix it,” said Bridget Henderson-Clemens, event organizer.
On Sunday in Mentor at Tommy Boys, dozens of community members came together to find a solution to stop bullying. Bridget helped organize the event after her daughter experienced bullying as well.
“It’s the most heart-breaking thing to have your kid come home or just pass you a little note when you are working and say, 'Mom, I don’t want to be here anymore,'” said Bridget.
But in her situation, she was able to work with the school counselor to help her daughter through it.
Now, Bridget is seeking more ways for both parents and students to navigate through these challenges.
“I know bullying can't go away. It can't be eradicated.” Bridget continued, “But once if the school is to do something to fix this and make it better, then naturally everything else will get better.”
Some of their ideas include an intervention, more parent involvement, and an algorithm to interrupt the state school board's definition of bullying.
“If you see something happening, do something about it. I feel like the inaction and neglect and complacency needs to be fixed in order to fix this problem,” Bridget said.
They remind the community that stopping bullying is not just for the students but also for the parents.
“If I can keep one kid from completing suicide and if [I] can save one family from living my life I mean. It was, it was 18 years yesterday. It is official— my son Eric, was gone longer than he was here,” said Janis.
