OttawaCharlie Mayor, 15, took her own life at Canterbury High School on June 17, 2025. She had been struggling with her mental health for many years, and was being followed by staff at both CHEO and the Youth Services Bureau.Charlie Mayor, 15, took her own life at her Ottawa high school in JuneRebecca Zandbergen · CBC News · Posted: Sep 23, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 5 hours agoJen Mayor with her daughter before Charlie died in June. Mayor said Charlie was on a ‘gender journey’ and had recently changed her name. (Submitted by Jen Mayor)Jen Mayor wants to be clear: This is not a story of a system failing someone.”Charlie was very much loved and very much supported and very much protected,” said Mayor, who wears a purple heart-shaped necklace that carries her daughter’s ashes.Charlie Mayor died by suicide on the afternoon of June 17. She was 15.The Grade 9 drama student took her own life at Canterbury High School — an arts-focused school that Charlie was proud to attend, and where her mother drove her each morning from their home in North Gower, 35 kilometres away.”She felt like she belonged,” said her mother, standing in Charlie’s downstairs bedroom in the family home. “She was around people who were much like her. [The school] did bring happiness and it did bring joy.”Mayor stands inside Charlie’s room, a place she said she doesn’t go to grieve, but to feel her daughter’s warmth and love. (Michel Aspirot/CBC)Charlie’s bedroom remains untouched, a snapshot of a teenage life. There’s a closet brimming with costumes, a basket filled with stuffed animals and a small stash of hand-made animal masks. Charlie was also a practising Wiccan, and so there are also several altars.”She came to the room to feel comfort,” Mayor said. If we can give guidance or support … with our story to help others know that those supports are there, maybe that changes their outcome.- Jen MayorAccording to her mom, Charlie was also on a “gender journey,” made evident by the way Mayor switches routinely between “she” and “they” pronouns when speaking about her daughter.She said Charlie was her daughter’s chosen name, a name she felt better reflected who she was. Her friends also called her Dusk.Charlie was a Grade 9 student at Canterbury High School when she died in June. (Michel Aspirot/CBC)Longstanding struggle with mental healthCharlie’s life was difficult. She struggled for many years with her mental health, but particularly in the last three.Her issues were complex. She’d received multiple diagnoses, she regularly self-harmed and made multiple attempts to end her life. She was medicated and closely monitored by a care team at CHEO, eastern Ontario’s children’s hospital in Ottawa, as well as by her pediatrician and staff at the Youth Services Bureau.But Charlie often hid that stuff from her friends.”Everyday life at Canterbury, people saw a very happy, very radiant, very joyful, very giving and loving person,” Mayor said. “Underneath, they didn’t see the pain.”School administrators were familiar with Charlie’s challenges. In fact, with the support of Charlie’s family, staff implemented a safety plan for her: If Charlie failed to show up for class or her whereabouts remained unknown for longer than 10 minutes, they would make every effort to find her.That’s what happened on June 17. According to Mayor, Charlie had gone missing and a teacher located her inside the school. She was rushed to the hospital. By the time her mother found out what had happened, her daughter was already lying in a hospital bed at CHEO. She died shortly after.Mayor has been meeting with staff and parents at the school this month to tell them more about Charlie and her challenges — and to reassure them that Charlie’s death was tragic, but not the result of any lack support from either the school or her family.Jen Mayor holds a photo of Charlie and wears a necklace carrying her daughter’s ashes. (Michel Aspirot/CBC)1 in 5 young people struggles with mental healthAccording to the Canadian Mental Health Association, suicide is the second leading cause of death among people ages 15-34. One in five under the age of 25 has experienced a mental illness, and up to 20 per cent of Canadians between the ages of 15 and 30 have experienced thoughts of suicide.Mayor said she hopes sharing Charlie’s story helps others better understand mental illness.”If we can give guidance or support … with our story to help others know that those supports are there, maybe that changes their outcome,” she said.If you or someone you know is struggling, here’s where to look for help: Canada’s Suicide Crisis Helpline: Call or text 988. Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868. Text 686868. Live chat counselling on the website. Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention: Find a 24-hour crisis centre. This guide from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health outlines how to talk about suicide with someone you’re worried about. If you’re worried someone you know may be at risk of suicide, you should talk to them about it, says the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention. Here are some warning signs: Suicidal thoughts. Substance use. Purposelessness. Anxiety. Feeling trapped. Hopelessness and helplessness. Withdrawal. Anger. Recklessness. Mood changes. ABOUT THE AUTHORRebecca Zandbergen is from Ottawa and has worked for CBC Radio across the country for more than 20 years, including stops in Iqaluit, Halifax, Windsor and Kelowna. Most recently she hosted the morning show at CBC London. Contact Rebecca at rebecca.zandbergen@cbc.ca or follow @rebeccazandberg on Twitter.
She lost her teenage daughter to suicide. Now this Ottawa mom hopes she can help others
