Jack Casey
October 13, 1940 – August 2, 2025

Longtime Eureka resident Jack Casey left us quietly and without warning on the morning of Sunday, August 2, 2025. He was no stranger to the Irish goodbye – the habit of ending a conversation by walking away or hanging up the phone when done saying what he needed to say, with no pretext or apology, usually to the surprise of the other party who is left hanging. Such goodbyes are not mean spirited, it’s just how Jack was wired. And after 84 years and a full life, it is how he left us.

Jackie Joe (Jack) Casey came into this world as a ten-pound baby on October 13, 1940, in rural Pittsburg County in eastern Oklahoma. He was the fifth of the nine children born to Elsie and Hersel Casey. Jack was a bookish child who loved to read to his younger siblings. As a teen he excelled in school and dreaded the summer break, which brought full-time work on the family farm in the oppressive heat and humidity of an Oklahoma summer. Dust Bowl hardships eventually claimed the farm, and his parents moved the family west to California. Hersel followed work throughout the Central Valley, often taking on three jobs, while Elsie maintained the home. Hersel was strict, especially with Jack, and brooked no lip or tardiness.

By the early-1950s, the family had settled in Laytonville. After graduating from high school, Jack was eager to leave home and returned to Oklahoma to be close to older brothers Jay and Bill. However, tragedy followed, as Bill was diagnosed with terminal service-related bone cancer, prompting Jack to move back to California. Over the following years, he worked odd jobs and took some college courses. As the Vietnam War loomed, Jack became convinced he would be drafted, so he decided to beat the government to the punch and enlist. His favorite part of the Army was completing boot camp, which he thought was easy compared to 12-hour days pulling green chain at the local mill. His first duty assignment was at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, where he served as a general’s clerk. Jack then received orders to ship out to Vietnam, something for which he was prepared but not at all eager. With the combat orders in hand, his general asked him, “Casey, do you want to go to war?” Jack replied, “No sir!” “How fast can you type?” asked the general. “Seventy words per minute, sir!” replied Jack. “Well then,” said the general, “give me those orders.” Nimble fingers kept Jack stateside during his Army service, something he believed may have saved his life.

After an honorable discharge, Jack returned to California. On a fateful night in 1967 he attended a high school play performance in Laytonville, where he met one of the theatre program’s creative stage managers, Diana Penna. Jack and Diana shared many of the classic ’60s liberal values and soon fell in love. Diana lived in Eureka, and Jack followed her there and they soon married. He earned a history degree at Humboldt State and was accepted to UCLA’s doctoral program. It was the early-’70s, and duty of another kind soon called, as Diana gave birth to their first child, son Rion – and two years later, daughter Kirin was born. Family obligations required Jack to shelve higher education aspirations for something that paid the bills, and he began a long career in the US Postal Service – a good portion of which was spent in Eureka’s Henderson Center office.

Jack’s hobbies included music (a true stereophile), woodworking, family back packing outings (most often with good friends Liz and Sef Murguia), and reading an endless collection of World War II and Civil War histories. As the children grew, the Casey house on Lowell Street became central in the community and with the peers of their children. The house had an open door and open fridge policy and was welcoming to all. Jack truly enjoyed hanging out with his children’s friends. He was even known to belly laugh at episodes of Bevis and Butthead while simultaneously stating, “That’s so stupid!” He had a great laugh. Jack was an O.G. techie nerd which included a ridiculously complex stereo system, a voluminous record collection, hundreds of Betamax movies (which he would tell you were far superior to VHS), and a love of researching camera manuals and consumer reviews to find the perfect camera for Diana, an avid photographer. Perhaps Jack’s greatest pleasure was listening to music with others while dishing out some esoteric point related to the song or artist being played.

Jack and Diana were regulars at Maxwell’s and then Café Waterfront, where they made many good friends. When their kids were in their teens, Diana and Jack hosted informal home dinners almost daily. Diana could cook anything (very well), and did, performing kitchen magic while Jack would often hover in the background philosophizing, debating some obscure point with whoever would listen, or serving as DJ with his store of vintage LPs, depending on what the situation called for – while Rion and Kirin and their friends hung out. Theirs was a welcoming, happy home – a second home to many. This is perhaps their greatest legacy.

Jack loved sports. He was a lifelong Giants and 49ers fan and followed college football and basketball with regional and family affiliations. In later years, he was a PGA tour junkie – watching every round and making weekly tournament bets with brother Jim that kept them in consistent communication. He counted Evergreen in Laytonville (sister Judy’s home) and the house and grove in Branscomb (sister Becky and Art’s home) among his favorite places to be. People he loved gathered there. Jack loved his family and was sentimental to his core.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Hersel and Elsie Casey; wife Diana Casey; brothers Bill, Bob, and Jay Casey; and sister Colene Halverson.

Jack is survived by his son Rion Casey (Janet; grandchild Alexandra); daughter Kirin Hickcox (David; grandchildren Thailan, Hayden, Maxwell, and Harper); brother Jim Casey (Susan); sisters Judith Bailey (Guiness McFadden), Debby Comer (Brad), and Becky Harwood (Art); and scores of nieces, nephews, cousins, and countless friends who are as family.

A heartfelt thank you to Julia Sheehan for being there.

A celebration of Jack’s life will be held at 6060 Noe Avenue in Eureka on Saturday, August 30 at 2 p.m. Rion and David will cook – bring a side or dessert if you can. We will push information to family and friends. Contact Rion or Kirin for details or questions.

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