Why did Cheslie Kryst, 2019 Miss N.C./Miss USA, die by suicide?

By Cash Michaels

Why would a young, successful African American woman who had achieved so much, and was positioned to accomplish even more, reportedly throw herself off from a New York City high-rise apartment building to end her life so soon?

That is the question being asked in the wake of the tragic, and yes, shocking death by suicide of Charlotte attorney Cheslie Kryst last Sunday. Published reports say that Kryst, who was crowned Miss North Carolina and Miss USA in 2019, was found dead on the sidewalk in front of the Orion Building in Manhattan where she lived, Sunday morning.

Saying that she jumped from the ninth floor, NYC police have ruled her death a suicide.

Cheslie Kryst was just 30 years old.

On the heels of the unfortunate suicide of actress/director Regina King’s 26-year-old son, Ian Alexander, Jr., Cheslie Kryst’s tragic death was mourned by many on social media.

“Heartbreaking loss,” posted Renee from Charlotte on Facebook, one of many. “Prayers for GOD’s comfort to family and friends.”

Hours before her death, Ms. Kryst posted a sullen photo of herself with the words, “May this day bring you rest and peace.”

At first blush, Cheslie Kryst seemed to have it all, and was on track to have even more. But there were deep tears underneath her successes.

In March 2021, she authored an essay in Allure magazine titled, ‘A Pageant Queen Reflects on Turning 30,” where, in the very first line she wrote, “Each time I say I’m turning 30,” I cringe a little. Sometimes I can successfully mask this uncomfortable response with excitement; other times, my enthusiasm feels hollow, like bad acting. Society has never been kind to those growing old, especially women. (Occasional exceptions are made for some of the rich and a few of the famous.) When I was crowned Miss USA 2019 at 28 years old, I was the oldest woman in history to win the title…A grinning, crinkly-eyed glance at my achievements thus far makes me giddy about laying the groundwork for more but turning 30 feels like a cold reminder that I’m running out of time to matter in society’s eyes — and it’s infuriating.

Beyond being a Charlotte attorney, former Miss North Carolina, and Miss USA, Cheslie Kryst was also a social activist, and an Emmy Award nominated correspondent for the television magazine show Extra.

Kryst was born in 1991 in Jackson, Michigan, attended high school in South Carolina and graduated cum laude from the University of Carolina.

According to a NC Bar Association blog entry in 2019 titled, Members in Focus: Cheslie Kryst Knows the Beauty of Persistence, Kryst lost her first attempt to win Miss North Carolina with the Miss America organization in 2014.

She fell short again in 2015.

By that time, she had aged out of competition for Miss America, so she decided to go for Miss USA. In 2016, Kryst was crowned fourth runner -up for Miss North Carolina.

Came back in 2017 and nothing…not even a swimsuit award which she nailed three times before.

2017 was also the year that she graduated from Wake Forest University School of Law, earning a law degree, an MBA and winning a national student trial advocacy competition. Kryst had also passed the North Carolina Bar and was hired as an associate at Poyner Spruill in Charlotte.

She had also started a fashion blog, White Collar Glam, in her spare time.

But winning a top crown was still Kryst’s dream…something her mother, April Simpkins, a former Mrs. North Carolina, accomplished in 2002.

With one year to go before she aged out of the Miss USA Organization, Cheslie Kryst went out for the 2019 Miss North Carolina crown, and then Miss USA, both of which she won.

Kryst used her reign to focus on a plethora of social problems and community projects.

Still, two years after the fact, Cheslie Kryst was in pursuit of a personal happiness that seemed to allude her, until her untimely death Sunday.

“I discovered that the world’s most important question, especially when asked repeatedly and answered frankly, is: why?” Cheslie Kryst wrote in her March 2021 Allure essay. Why earn more achievements just to collect another win? Why pursue another plaque or medal or line item on my resume if it’s for vanity’s sake, rather than out of passion? Why work so hard to capture the dreams I’ve been taught by society to want when I continue to only find emptiness?

Some saw the underlying warning in Ms. Kryst’s death - that there are those among us who are suffering mentally and emotionally more than others, despite their outward appearance, who need help.

“Check in on your friends, family and neighbors,” wrote Yvonne Lewis Holley, former NC House member on Facebook. “Your call, smile and love today could save a life.”

Editor’s note - if you or a loved one are struggling with mental health issues, call (888)331-3881 to learn more about best treatment options.