spencer smith was a 16-year-old high school sophomore. he loved his family, his friends come and he loved football. he spent all summer working out and getting fit to get ready for team tryouts, but then of course can covid mandates. this meant no tackle football but flag football. soon after he lost his zeal for the game altogether he stopped working out and then his grades began to suffer as he struggles a lot with online learning. when spencer was finally allowed to attend school one day a week, he asked to stay home. why? he found being in school to difficult if he wasn't allowed to interact with his friends. this new normal of personal isolation has sent spencer into a deep depression and last friday, spencer tragically took his own life. spencer's father joins me now. i know your family is completely devastated, and we are so sorry for your loss. i have a 15-year-old daughter and my heart breaks for you. when did you notice spencer is really beginning to struggle with this social isolation? >> pretty much when the football season tu

maine high school sophomore spencer smith also dying by suicide in recent weeks, leaving a note saying he felt locked in his house. >> we didn't see the pain that apparently he was in. >> reporter: according to the cdc, anxiety and depression during the pandemic have skyrocketed among young adults, with 75% found to be struggling. and when asked if they had thoughts of suicide in the past 30 days, 1 in 4 young adults responded yes. how can families help kids feel a little bit less alone during this time? >> anyone who works with or cares for children are in a unique position to catch early signs that a child might be struggling. and i think the earlier that we can catch mental health conditions, the better the child will do overall. >> it's our goal that if we can save another child that's out there, even one, we've done our job as a family. and we've honored christian. >> reporter: and tom, doctors say providing a routine for kids can act as a swaddle for the mind. and also validating, listening to their feelings and concerns can provide critical reassurance. tom? >> our kids need us

smith was dead. and lottie spencer was overwhelmed with guilt and anger. >> waseem daker is evil. he's pure evil. he's a monster. >> and that's what lottie told police. she said her stalker must have been the one behind the attack on carmen and nick. but why? daker was obsessed with lottie. he'd never met or even spoken to carmen. or had he? lottie thought she knew the answer. a phone call she says daker made to carmen's phone a few days before the murder. >> it was friday the 20th, and like daker style the calls started coming in and the phone got put off the hook. and then i could hear her phone ringing. >> carmen answered, then hung up abruptly. what was said? nobody knows. but carmen told her sister and brother-in-law that the call was from lottie's stalker. >> she said i'm going to go get a hammer and put it next to the bed. and i remember laughing thinking if that guy decides to get in the house he's in trouble. but you really never think that it would go to where it went. >> we had talked about her packing some stuff and coming to stay with us for a while. >> lottie says seeing carmen's re