N.Y. Anti-Bullying Crusader Takes His Own Life Near Anniversary Of Son's Death
MONROE, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- It is an unimaginable loss for a Hudson Valley family.
A father who became an anti-bullying advocate after losing his son to suicide, has now taken his own life, reports CBS 2's Tony Aiello.
A shadow of grief is once again upon a house in Orange County, following the weekend suicide of Kevin Jacobsen.
"That whole family to go through this twice now, I just can't believe it," neighbor Jacqui Vega said.
"There's never an answer to it. It's sad, you know. That's all I can say. Just keep 'em in your prayers and hope the wife can carry on," added resident Bill Hale.
Back in September, Wanda and Kevin Jacobsen spoke about the suicide death of their son, Kameron, who suffered physical, verbal and cyber bullying.
"We don't want Kameron or any of these kids to have died in vain," Kevin Jacobsen said at the time.
In their grief the Jacobsens found comfort in creating the "Kindness Above Malice" foundation to help other bullied teens.
In the wake of Kameron's death by suicide, Kevin Jacobsen was building quite a reputation as an advocate -- working at the local, state and even the federal level on anti-bullying legislaton.
Friends told Aiello privately they were stunned to learn of his death this weekend and believe the upcoming year anniversary of losing his son weighed heavily on Kevin Jacobsen.
Robin Goodman is an expert on the grieving process.
"What you have is an anniversary, and we know that if someone has had a traumatic response and experienced something traumatic, that anniversary or other kinds of reminders can trigger those overwhelming feelings of shock and sadness and disbelief," Dr. Goodman said.
Kevin Jacobsen leaves behind a wife and two children.
A state legislator was working with Kevin Jacobsen to revamp New York's anti-bullying laws. Her office hopes to introduce the bill in the next month or two.
