"Finally it's here," 15-year-old Felicia Garcia reportedly said yesterday afternoon just before she leaped in front of an incoming train at the Huguenot Staten Island Railway station. Soon after she was pronounced dead at Staten Island University Hospital. What caused the Tottenville High School student to make such a terrible leap is still uncertain, but the night before, the bullied young woman had tweeted "I cant, im done, I give up."
"She got bullied in the school, especially by the football players, because she looked different and had piercings," senior Amanda Liquori told the Post. "She wouldn’t have done it if she wasn’t bullied," another student tweeted. “All this girl wanted was to be left alone. And nobody could do that for her.”
Troubles for Garcia weren't just in school. Margarita Pabon, Garcia's maternal aunt, told the Advance the girl's parents had died and she was living in a foster home—a situation alluded to in her tweets. Students at Tottenville appear to be organizing a vigil for Garcia at the Hugenot train station this afternoon at 5:30 p.m.
Sadly, this isn't the first time a Tottenville student has used that Staten Island Railway to end their life; another student took his life there two years ago.
Important: If someone you know exhibits warning signs of suicide: do not leave the person alone, remove any firearms, alcohol, drugs or sharp objects that could be used in a suicide attempt, and call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or take the person to an emergency room or seek help from a medical or mental health professional.
