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Fairfield mom creates campaign after daughter's suicide

Mother starts nonprofit after her daughter's suicide

By: Jake Ryle

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FAIRFIELD, Ohio -- It’s the hope of a Fairfield mother that no parent will ever experience what she has.

Paula Adams’ 13-year-old daughter, Lillian, took her own life on June 21, less than three weeks after her husband passed away.

Adams said she noticed signs of bullying online, but not at Fairfield Middle School, where Lillian was a seventh-grader.

Lillian was the second middle-schooler to take her own life in a little less than three years; 13-year-old Emilie Olsen committed suicide in December 2014 over what her parents claim was constant bullying at the school.

Since her daughter's death, Paula has started Project Lira to provide resources to young people who have thoughts of suicide.

“I feel like she needs to be recognized, and anyone else who has a child who has committed suicide needs to be recognized,” Adams said.

The Fairfield City School District created Thursday its first district-level position to deal with bullying.

Adams said she’s glad the school added the anti-bullying position.

"I feel like there's a lot of people that would give us a lot of input so we can take what we've learned and what other people's experiences are ... I think Lily and Emilie would be happy about that,” she said.