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The building where he died

When they said, “I have some sad news. Your son, Charles was found dead this morning in an apartment on Monument Avenue,” my world collapsed. At the same time, I was confused by Monument Avenue.

In Richmond, Virginia, this area is the most prestigious residential avenue, a picturesque neighborhood with million dollar row houses lined along cobblestone streets. It looks like something straight out of a movie.

For a long time, I thought he must’ve been further down that avenue in perhaps a seedier part of that street, although I’m not aware of where that might be. I just assumed if he was at an apartment where a lot of kids were using, it had to be in some seedy section.

As it turns out, it’s in the urban area right past elegant row houses. The building itself, looks pretty regal from the outside and it’s got some historical significance having been built in 1924, not long after cars started to become the norm. But apparently, it’s a nightmare inside with miserable reviews once you scroll down past the paid ads. And what I hear matches the one star reviews. It’s an old building that has not been properly maintained over the years.

So three years after Charles died, I got the nerve to go by there and just stand on the outside. I actually took this picture as I stood on the sidewalk on 1600 Monument Avenue.

I don’t know what floor he was on, which apartment is THE ONE. All I know is that he hated it and it was nasty. He expresses how much he hated it in a rap song, Mr. Dopeman— the last song he wrote just days before he killed himself.

I have no idea if I’ll ever get the urge to go inside. Quite frankly I don’t really want to. Not now anyway.

Published by

AnneMoss Rogers

AnneMoss Rogers is a mental health and suicide education expert, mental health speaker, suicide prevention trainer and consultant. She is author of the Book, Diary of a Broken Mind and co-author of Emotionally Naked: A Teacher's Guide to Preventing Suicide and Recognizing Students at Risk with Kim O'Brien PhD, LICSW. She raised two boys, Richard and Charles, and lost her younger son, Charles to addiction and suicide on June 5, 2015. She is a motivational speaker who empowers by educating and provides life saving strategies and emotionally healthy coping skills. As talented and funny as Charles was, letting other people know they matter was his greatest gift. And now that's the legacy she carries forward in her son's memory. Mental Health Speakers Website.

8 thoughts on “The building where he died”

  1. Jared lived in those apartments one year when he was at VCU. He moved every year and this was definitely not one of the nicer stops.

  2. I did. 4 months after Daniel’s death I had an irresistible desire to go to the house in LA. Markiplier and Ryan were still living there. Amazing view of downtown LA. They had since removed the closet door on which he looped the belt on its outward corner. I sat underneath the closet doorway where his feet would have been dangling. I needed to feel the pain.

    1. I understand that. I have not been able to find out the floor, the apartment number or mich else. And I wonder if it’s still a trap house. If that’s the case, I would need someone to go with me.

            1. I might just take you up on that. I am sorry you lost your brother. I think sibling suicide is hard too because you feel you have to be good for the parents. So many siblings deny their grief due to a feeling their hurt can’t measure up to the parents.

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