Casey Courtney-Wolfman (Dec 31, 1987–Nov 20, 2019)

We are bereft to share, on behalf of our family, that our baby brother Casey is no longer with us. A copy of his obituary is included below. It was an uncomfortable decision to share this online. However, due to the nature of Casey’s illnesses, he had lost touch with many of his friends over the years. Please pass this information on to his friends if you can. We sincerely apologise to those who have to learn about Casey via social media, which we wanted to limit as much as possible. - Byron & Leora

Casey Courtney-Wolfman and his mirthful, mischievous grin have left us too soon. On November 20th, in the company of his mother and brother, Casey passed away peacefully after a long and painful battle with mental health and addictions illnesses. He was the talented youngest child of Suzanne Courtney and the late Martyn Wolfman, the “missing link” between his older twin siblings, Byron (Gigi) and Leora (Thomas), and adored by his aunts Perle Coles (Ian), Norma Sirot (Herman), and the late Rochelle Goodwin. Casey will be greatly missed and warmly remembered by his wonderful cousins in Toronto, Florida, California, and Massachusetts.

Before his illness consumed him, Casey was a multi-talented artist who excelled at anything and everything he felt like taking up. Casey had multiple acting roles in community theatre, on TV, and in short films. While a student at Rosedale Heights School of the Arts, he wrote and produced the play “James Dean and the Dinosaurs”, a dark religious comedy that reflected Casey’s inner conflicts having been brought up in a mixed Jewish-Christian household. From the time he was three years old, he excelled at visual arts with profound detail. Most of all, Casey loved to express himself through music and audio production, just like his father. Everyone who knew and loved Casey will have memories of the idiosyncratic and uniquely “Casey” songs he would come up with on the spot on guitar, piano, trumpet, or really whatever instrument or device that crossed him. Casey’s works of art are a gift that will keep a part of him with us forever and remind us of what made him such a special person who touched so many lives.

It is important to explicitly state that Casey and his family relentlessly sought, in futility, access to treatment for Casey’s illnesses. His family burned through countless, scarce dollars to put him through private rehab facilities when publicly-funded options were unavailable. During Casey’s final years, he was frequently hospitalised and apprehended under the Mental Health Act. He could not get the help he needed or deserved. Casey’s death is a tragedy that is too common with countless other stories in Canada.

A memorial for Casey might be held in the new year. In lieu of flowers, please feel free to make a donation to the charity of your choice. Alternately, ways to pay tribute to Casey include: Writing a letter to your MP or MPP to express your concerns about the sorry state of mental health services in Canada. Go to a dog park and admire happy dogs ‘having a bark’. Do something mischievous. Write a silly song.

We love you Casey and will never forget you.