In loving memory
Jonathan Casey Henley
October 24, 1994 — October 11, 2026
“I just want to be remembered when I’m gone… someone heard my story, learned of my fight, felt the need to pass it on.”
— Casey, from his poem “Gone”
Why he wrote
Casey wrote constantly — poems, songs, and letters filled notebook after notebook. In My True Purpose, he said what all of it was for: helping anyone who helps themselves, and fighting evil and injustice against innocents. He wrote through pain he rarely spoke out loud, and he hoped his words would reach someone who needed them.
This page carries that hope forward. His words are here, free, for anyone who wants to listen — and if they move you, you can give in his name to the work he cared about: help for people living with mental illness, and for families who have lost someone the way his family lost him.
Casey’s Words — Read Aloud
46 recordings · free
His poems and writings, read aloud in full — the collection his family gathered from his notebooks. It is offered free, as his gift, to anyone who wants to hear him.
Listen to the albumHis writings
Every poem and piece transcribed from his notebooks, in the order his family gathered them. His words, exactly as he wrote them.
Read his writingsCasey, growing up
Pictures from his family, from little boy to young man.
Give in Casey’s name
Both organizations accept gifts in memory of a loved one. Your donation goes directly to the charity — it never passes through the family.
National Alliance on Mental Illness
NAMI
Support, education, and advocacy for people living with mental illness and the families who stand beside them. On NAMI’s giving page, you can make your gift a tribute in Casey’s memory.
Donate to NAMIAmerican Foundation for Suicide Prevention
AFSP
Research, education, and support for those affected by suicide. AFSP’s memorial giving page lets you donate in memory or honor of a loved one.
Donate to AFSPEach button takes you to the charity’s own secure donation page.
If you are struggling, or worried about someone you love, you are not alone.
Call or text 988
The Suicide and Crisis Lifeline — free, confidential, 24 hours a day.