Utah mother Samie Hardman became a viral figure after she posted photos of her 12-year-old son, Drayke Hardman, after his death. The images showed her son at a local hospital following his suicide attempt before he died the next morning.
Instagram users worldwide sympathized with Drayke Hardman’s story hundreds of times in several languages. His mother’s original post garnered over 1.8 million likes, and she has gained over 90,000 followers since the post.
“This…. This is the result of bullying,” she captioned the photo last week. “My handsome boy was fighting a battle that not even I could save him. It is real, it is silent and there is nothing absolutely nothing as a parent you can do to take this deep hurt away. There are no signs, only hurtful words of others that ultimately stole our Drayke from this cruel place.”
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“Teach Kindness and #doitfordrayke,” she added. The hashtag has been used over 500 times on Instagram and over 300 times on Twitter.
Father Andy Hardman tweeted out his son’s story, tagging his favorite basketball players Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert, and Jordan Clarkson. Drayke Hardman was “the biggest Utah Jazz fan,” according to his father.
“Thank you for making a bright spot in his heart,” he wrote.
This is so heartbreaking man!! Im praying for you and your family!! If anyone has the families info please send it ASAP!! ??? #doitfordrayke https://t.co/PlAGUetGl2
— Donovan Mitchell (@spidadmitchell) February 12, 2022
Point guard Donovan Mitchell responded on Twitter, calling the story “heartbreaking.”
“[I’m] praying for you and your family!! If anyone has the families[‘] info please send it ASAP!!” Mitchell tweeted.
On Monday, center Rudy Gobert presented the Hardman family with his All-Star ring during their game against the Houston Rockets. Drayke Hardman’s sister Abbie Jo took to Instagram to thank the NBA players.
“Officially made my baby brother’s dreams come true, even though he [wasn’t] here physically, he was definitely there to lead the team to the win,” she wrote. “Thank you [Gobert] for letting us be there for your award and letting our boy shine tonight. Thank you [Mitchell] for reaching out to my mom and allowing us to be there and letting our message get out there.”
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A public viewing is set for Feb 18.
If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, call the suicide prevention hotline at 1-800-273-TALK.
