Mum fundraising for headstone of trans son who died by suicide
Kansas’ Attorney General has called on schools to out trans and nonbinary students, despite there being no law in place to enforce this. (Getty Images)
A mother is fundraising for a headstone and flowers for her trans son, described as an “open and accepting” boy with a “wicked sense of humour”, who died by suicide in October.
Rita Williams started a fundraiser for her son Corei’s funeral expenses after he died on 12 October, with the fundraiser also set to donate to four charities, including the trans youth charity Mermaids.
The fundraiser for Corei, who was 14 when he died, has now raised over £3,600, with trans model Munroe Bergdorf sharing the page on Instagram and donating £500.
Rita explained that fundraising to protect trans young people had been a wish of Corei’s, and that she hopes the fundraiser is able to reach a “substantial sum” for the four charities, which also include mental health causes.
“If we reach our target this should be a substantial sum and will honour Corei’s last wish to protect trans youth in his name,” she said.
Rita shared on the fundraiser that Corei was a “typical teenager who loved giraffes, Doctor Who and the colour yellow”, adding that he had a “wicked sense of humour and was full of sass”.
She explained that Corei was autistic and “struggled with his mental health”, as well as being “subjected to transphobic abuse” before his death.
She added that his organs had been donated to help “at least four other people”, and that in his last words he had forgiven those who had misgendered and deadnamed him, calling to “protect trans youth in my name”.
“I will hopefully be seen as a boy in my next life, so I’m happy,” he wrote.
An inquest into Corei’s death will be held in due course.
Suicide is preventable. Readers who are affected by the issues raised in this story are encouraged to contact Samaritans on 116 123 (www.samaritans.org), or Mind on 0300 123 3393 (www.mind.org.uk). Readers in the US are encouraged to contact the National Suicide Prevention Line on 1-800-273-8255.
