Popular radio host Delilah Rene — known for her inspirational and uplifting syndicated show — released a heartbreaking statement on Saturday revealing that her 18-year-old son, Zachariah, had taken his own life.
“My dear friends, I need to share some devastating news with you,” she wrote. “In the early morning hours, Tuesday, October 3, my son, Zachariah, took his life.”
Delilah, who adopted 10 of her 13 children, said that she plans to be “absent from the radio and on social media for a time” to process what has unfolded with her family and to properly grieve.
She also revealed that Zachariah had been facing a battle with depression.
https://www.facebook.com/Delilah/photos/a.420491190336.193818.276802375336/10155874110920337/?type=3&permPage=1
“He was being treated, counseled, and embraced fiercely by family and friends while battling depression for some time now,” she said. “My heart is broken beyond repair and I can not fathom how to go on … but I have to believe he is at peace with the Lord and that God will get us through.”
The radio star also changed her Facebook cover photo to an image that includes the phone number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.
Delilah, who also lost another son in 2012 due to sickle-cell anemia, asked for prayers for her son and pledged to offer her own invocations for those suffering from depression.
Please pray for Delilah and her family during this immensely difficult time.