Teacher of the year posted before killing her 4 kids in house fire

24 February 2024 , 10:33

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Bernadine “Birdie” Pruessner and her children – twins Ellie and Ivy Pruessner, 9; 5-year-old Jackson Spader; and 2-year-old MIllie Spader (Image: GoFundMe)

A mum who was once named Teacher of the Year wrote 'live each day like it's your last' before killing herself and her four children in a fire at their home.

Bernadine "Birdie" Pruessner set her own house on fire in Ferguson, Missouri, police say, killing twins Ellie and Ivy Pruessner, nine, Jackson Spader, five, and Millie Spader, two.

Now, police say the fire on Monday, February 19 was set on purpose. Right before this, Pruessner shared on social media: "All my kids, peacefully sleeping in my bed...Knowing they are loved so fiercely that I'd do absolutely anything for them. This is my favourite moment."

She also wrote on social media, "live each day like it's your last". Police said: "It is believed that Bernadine intentionally set a mattress on fire as that was the point of origin for the fire. A note was also left stating Bernadine's intentions to take her life and the lives of her children."

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Bernadine posted about her children before killing them all in a house fire (KSDK)

Her lawyer, Nathan Cohen, told a newspaper that Pruessner was in a big fight over her kids with her ex-husband and an old boyfriend. They were both making things tough for her. Her family made a GoFundMe page and said: "She saw her children being used by their fathers as foils and she viewed the process and system for resolution of those claims as cumbersome, tedious and never ending."

"Each day that Birdie would score a step forward, her ex-husband and or her former boyfriend would undertake an action to denigrate or undermine her role as a mother." The court papers say her ex-husband didn't want her to move closer to her mom because he was worried about how she was feeling. She was also having a hard time with her ex-boyfriend about who gets to look after the kids.

Nathan Cohen was shocked by what happened because the mum always seemed happy and really loved her kids. He didn't think anything this sad would happen.

Fire raged through the house until firefighters could get it under control (FOX 2 NOW)

A statement from the mum's family on GoFundMe shared that she was in a "awful place" amid "ongoing litigation" with her ex-husband and father of her twin daughters. Pruessner and her ex, David Pruessner, divorced in 2017, and they both looked after Ivy and Ellie until last year, according to the New York Post.

Pruessner was also dealing with a custody fight with her former boyfriend, Jared Spader, who is the dad of Jackson and Millie. Pruessner's lawyer, Nathan Cohen, told The Post: "She saw her children being used by their dads as pawns and she found the process and system for sorting out those claims as slow, boring and never-ending.

Posted hours before Bernadine took her own life and those of her children (No credit)

Every day that Birdie made a step forward, her ex-husband or her old boyfriend would do something to belittle or weaken her role as a mum."

Cohen said Pruessner earned "less than $60,000 a year" (£47,000) and found it hard to pay for the costs of the legal battles. Cohen mentioned he never thought his client was a risk to herself or her kids.

Abigail O'Leary