Cheslie Kryst had many accomplishments. She was a student and athlete at the University of South Carolina. She earned an MBA from Wake Forest University. She worked as an attorney. In 2019, she won the Miss North Carolina pageant, and she went on to win Miss USA. She also competed in the Miss Universe pageant. She went on to work as a correspondent for the news show EXTRA.
Unfortunately, Kryst’s life was cut short. At the age of 30, she jumped from a high-rise apartment building in Midtown Manhattan. Her body was found on the street around 7:15am outside the 60-story Orion building where she lived. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Shortly before her fatal jump, Kryst made her final post on Instagram. She posted a picture of the side of her face and captioned it, “May this day bring you rest and peace.” Comments have been turned off for the post.
Fans have been turning to Kryst’s previous Instagram post to share their sorrow at her death. In this post, Kryt shared a picture of herself after hitting the gym and captioned it, “Those January workouts been workin lol.” This was just two weeks before her death.
One of Kryst’s followers wrote, “Thinking of you dearest Cheslie I am so sorry that you went through so much and your heart and burden was so heavy that you felt you needed to escape this earth. your passing impacted my life and I will finish my masters program to dedicate myself to helping people that feel like you did. rest well beautiful soul.”
Before Kryst jumped from the apartment building, she sent her mother, Alice Simpkins, a long text, and she intentionally sent the text at a time when she knew her mother would be in a workout class and wouldn’t be available to get to her phone.
Simpkins shared the text on the show “Red Table Talk.” In the text, Kryst wrote, “First, I’m sorry, by the time you get this, I won’t be alive anymore. And it makes me even sadder to write this because I know it will hurt you the most.” She added, “I wish I could stay with you, but I cannot bear the crushing weight of persistent sadness, hopelessness, and loneliness any longer.” Kryst’s text continued, “I cry almost every day now, like I’m in mourning. I wished for death for years. And I know you would want to know and want to help, but I haven’t wanted to share this weight with anyone. I love you more than any person I’ve ever known. You’ve done nothing wrong, you’ve done everything right.”
Simpkins revealed that Kryst had attempted suicide before, and she had battled depression through her 20s.