‘Happen to anyone’: Dolly Everett’s parents share message after what would have been their daughter’s 22nd birthday

She was an adventurous, bright and energetic 14-year-old girl. One night in 2018, everything changed forever.

Amy “Dolly” Everett should have been preparing to celebrated her 22nd birthday this week.

A sweet, free-spirited girl, she would have kicked off the day with a plate of birthday pancakes before partying with friends and family.

“It’s not your birthday if you don’t have pancakes according to Dolly,” her mother, Kate, told news.com.au.

“(Dolly and her sister Meg) loved to party in our garden. So given that Doll was very close to so many in our community … there would have been champagne and a big party with many, many fairy lights in mum and dad’s garden.”

Instead, this Thursday on Dolly's birthday, Mrs Everett and her husband, Tick, will have a quiet dinner together to honour their daughter.

Dolly Everett would have turned 22 on May 1. Picture: Supplied to news.com.au

Dolly, who lived with her family on a remote cattle station in the Northern Territory, took her own life at the age of 14 in 2018 after being subjected to an extended period of bullying and cyber-bullying. 

Seven years on, Mrs Everett said milestones like birthdays don’t get any easier.

“On those special days, there’s nothing at all that’ll stop the tears. But we do have an amazing community around us and people that hold space for us. And they say her name so she’ll never be forgotten,” she said.

Looking back with the benefit of hindsight, the 48-year-old said she noticed changes in Dolly before their adventurous little girl who always lit up a room took her life.

“When Dolly would go back to school, she would have a different personality and she would become more withdrawn,” she said.

“I noticed when she would come home for holidays, she wouldn’t be eating as well as she would normally.

“But one of the biggest indicators for us was her physical reaction to her phone ringing or text message sound coming through. That in itself should have indicated that something was far more wrong than she told us about.”

Dolly was subjected to bullying, vile name-calling and online abuse during her time at a Queensland boarding school.

In November 2017, Dolly wrote a heartbreaking email to her mother about how she handled being confronted by a bunch of students, one of whom told her she should kill herself.

Months later, Dolly took her life on January 3, 2018.

Kate and Tick Everett created Dolly’s Dream to honour their daughter. Picture: Supplied to news.com.au

That night, Mrs Everett said there was “nothing out of the ordinary”.

Dolly even made her signature dish – potato salad, coleslaw and steak – for the whole family.

But about 30 minutes after they went to bed, the parents found their teenage daughter dead.

“We look back and there won’t be a day that we don’t think we should have done more,” said Mrs Everett.

“To see her world torn apart like this is heartbreaking. And you know, we are an average family living in rural Australia. If it can happen to us, it can happen to anyone.”

It’s why she’s urging all Aussies to come together and take a stand against bullying on Do It For Dolly Day next Friday, May 9.

Every year, thousands honour Dolly by dressing in her favourite colour and participating in fundraising activities to help support the organisation’s anti-bullying work.

“Most simply, it’s a day to acknowledge that we are all standing together to say no to bullying and to spread kindness.”

This year they are hoping to surpass the goal with the simple message ‘Go blue to end bullying’.

Do It For Dolly Day will be celebrated on Friday. Picture: Supplied to news.com.au

It comes after the eSafety Commission revealed cyber-bullying is on the rise.

In 2023, eSafety received 2383 reports of cyber-bullying – a 40 per cent increase from 1,700 in 2022. Two thirds of reports concerned children aged 12 to 15 years.

Mrs Everett said the stats are “terrible” but she is hopeful they will decrease, saying initiatives like Dolly’s Dream’s free 24-hour support line and the Beacon cyber safety app, “can only put us in a better position”.

“I hope that we have people becoming better digital citizens, and just better people all around. I hope that children who are exposed to Dolly’s Dream may become more empathetic, and just hold space for someone else who may be struggling.”

Speaking ahead of Do It For Dolly Day, she encouraged parents to look out for any major changes in their child’s personalities and check in if they notice something is wrong.

“Teenagers get moody but if you can honestly look at them and see a change in their personality, whether they’re an A student, and they suddenly aren’t achieving those grades, or they are suddenly avoiding their favourite sport, or they go through a distinct change in friends … then that we need to start having conversations, like ‘how are things at school?’ and ‘tell me about what you’re using on your phone?’”

The family hope by using their voices and sharing Dolly’s story, others will be encouraged to speak up and get help.

“I just hope that her death is never in vain and at the end of the day, everyone feels brave enough to speak even if their voice shakes like Dolly said.”

Originally published as ‘Happen to anyone’: Dolly Everett’s parents share message after what would have been their daughter’s 22nd birthday