Anti-bullying group turns 20

By Pam Wright, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Chatham Voice

Mike Neuts has covered a lot of ground in the last 20 years.

On Oct. 25, 2005, the Thamesville resident and his wife Brenda founded Make Children Better Now (MCNB) – a non-profit agency aimed at carrying an anti-bullying message to children and youth.

Created to honour the memory of their son Myles, who died as the result of a tragic bullying incident at school, the non-profit has allowed Neuts to share his story to some 300,000 students across Canada.

“There’s a lot to celebrate,” Neuts said of the past two decades, noting MCBN has followed its mandate to “support like-minded organizations helping kids.

“We want to help provide happy and healthy environments for all children.”

Myles died in February 1998. The 10-year-old was taken off life support six days after he was discovered unconscious hanging from a coat hook in a washroom stall in school.

A coroner’s inquest was held to probe Myles’ death. Its jury couldn’t determine the exact cause of death but they did bring forward 24 recommendations to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

After much soul searching, the Thamesville couple founded MCBN, in part to fulfill the changes recommended by the inquest.

The MCBN acronym aligns with Myles Casey Benson Neuts’ initials – another way for the couple to honour their child’s memory.

Following the publicity generated by the inquest, Neuts was asked to share his anti-bullying message at a London-area elementary school.

The effort grew from there, and along with presentations to thousands of students, Neuts has worked with dozens of agencies, law enforcement and educational groups, as well as mental health professionals.

And while Myles’ death was a senseless tragedy, Neuts said sharing his experience has brought hope to many. He has received 40,000 letters and cards. Some feature little drawings from young children; some come from bullies who say they will never do it again and some are from victims who say Neuts’ talk kept them from committing suicide.

“As long as I can, I’ve got to do whatever I can, because it seems to be helpful,” he said.

Through fundraising and advocacy work, MCBN has launched various initiatives, supporting many other youth-oriented organizations and campaigns promoting empathy, justice and respect.

Over the years, MCBN has sponsored summer camps, the singing program Respect Revolution, and held summits on children’s mental health, bringing experts to Chatham-Kent to assist with children’s mental health.

But that’s just a few of the things MCBN has assisted with, Neuts said, stressing there’s more to be done as bullying appears to be on the rise.

Cyber-bullying on social media is a particularly pressing problem, he said, creating difficult challenges for officials and children themselves. In days gone by, victims of bullying could find relief outside of school or work.

“There’s no safe place,” he explained. “Thanks to technology, it occurs 24-7.”

The current political climate isn’t helping the cause, he explained, as world leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump, are bullying others on the world stage.

That isn’t helping create healthier kids or safer environments, he added, noting that in his opinion, many Americans are afraid but aren’t speaking out.

“I think that if you have a different skin colour than white, you’re extremely scared of him,” he added. “Victims of bullying don’t speak out because of fear.”

The news coming out of the United States makes Neuts think of friends he’s met along the way, including Jewish Auschwitz survivor Dr. Eva Olsen. Olsen became like a “grandmother” to him, he said, sharing her story of surviving the Nazi regime in the Second World War. Except for herself and her sisters, Olsen’s family perished at the hands of the Nazis.

She taught Neuts that everyone has a role to play.

He said Olsen also taught him that the bullies were the Nazi Gestapo and Hitler, the victims were the intellectuals and Jewish people, and the bystanders were the countries that “handed over” their Jewish population to Hitler with no questions asked.

He points out that bystanders – those who stand by and watch as bullying occurs – are guilty too.

Bullies who downplay their actions by saying they were just joking, don’t get a pass either, Neuts said.

“’I didn’t mean to hurt anyone – I was just having fun’ is a common excuse.”

But on a positive note, he said there are many great children and youth and they don’t get recognition.

“The sensationalized stories are about the bad people, and the bad people always get press,” he said. “There’s an awful lot of really good young people out there that we don’t acknowledge in our day-to-day lives.”

MCBN will celebrate its 20th anniversary with a special gala at the John D. Bradley Centre in Chatham on Oct. 25, landing on the exact date the agency was started. The extravaganza will feature music by Big Shiny Toons, a silent auction, photo booths and more.

Tickets for the fundraiser are $150. Interested parties can contact neutsmike@gmail.com; tony.drouillard@hotmail.com; or davaroubichaud59@gmail.com online.