Joey lives on through
his foundation

By Elizabeth Stieber
Times Staff Writer

At one time, Joe Casey didn’t feel he was doing a good job as president of the Mayfair Athletic Club.
But his young son, Joey, cheered him up.
"He told me not to quit," Joe recalled. "‘Things will get better,’ he said. It was good advice."
So when Joey died suddenly seven years ago, the Pennypack family, driven by the youngster’s positive attitude, pursued a cause in his memory.
The Joey F. Casey Memorial Foundation has assisted thousands of local schoolchildren during those seven years.
"We’re able to do something good in our son’s memory and a lot of people are benefiting by it," Joe Casey said.
Through its involvement with the state’s Education Improvement Tax Credit, nearly $1 million in tuition assistance has been distributed to Catholic school students in the area.
The non-profit organization also holds annual soccer and golf tournaments every year, raising an average of $15,000 to fund scholarships for two seventh-graders at St. Bernard’s and scholarships for two local eighth-graders to attend the Catholic high school of their choice.
The students are chosen based on an application and a submitted essay.
This year’s golf tournament takes place Saturday, May 28, at the Middletown Country Club in Langhorne, Bucks County.
If any money is left over, the foundation donates it to the Mayfair Athletic Club, Lighthouse Soccer Club or the Police Athletic League, or even to help someone in a dire situation.
"If a family is in need, we help them," Joe Casey said.
Joey Casey, a seventh-grader at St. Bernard’s Elementary School, was a month away from his 13th birthday when he died after a fall at his home in March 1998.
The family — Joe, his wife Nancy and son Sean, now 15 — received contributions following Joey’s death that they decided to use to help other St. Bernard’s students who were Joey’s age.
"We figured it was much better to do something for others than to wallow," said Nancy Casey.
That donation turned into a foundation that has been growing every year. During its first two years, the foundation held the soccer and golf tournaments. The Caseys then decided to add the Education Improvement Tax Credit to their organization.
The Pennsylvania tax-credit program allows businesses to make contributions to scholarship or educational improvement organizations like the Joey F. Casey Memorial Foundation. In turn, the corporation gets a state tax credit for as much as 90 percent of the amount that it donated.
The schools determine which students receive the funding, which can raise from $250 to $1,000, "depending on the need," Nancy Casey said.
The Casey family specifically wanted to help other children who attend Catholic schools in the Northeast.
"We care very much about the community," Nancy Casey said.
After all, her son was an active kid. Joey enjoyed basketball. His dad said the youngster could play any position in baseball for the Mayfair Athletic Club. And he fought for playing time at the Lighthouse Soccer Club.
Tom Crossett, Joey’s soccer coach and foundation vice president, said the boy possessed a mature work ethic and a sense of pride not found in every 12-year-old.
"He took instruction very well," Crossett said. "He was probably one of the hardest-working kids in trying to better himself."
Crossett recalled a time when a frustrated Joey asked his coach why he wasn’t getting enough playing time. His coach was impressed with the midfielder’s desire to improve.
"I wish I had seventeen kids on my team like that," Crossett said.
Added Joe Casey, "He wasn’t afraid to speak his mind."
His mother described Joey as a kind-hearted boy who led a full life, as short as it was.
"He was an average, friendly, good guy," Nancy Casey said.
"He lit up a room with his smile," his father said. ••
For more information about the Joey F. Casey Memorial Golf Outing, or to provide sponsorship, call 215-331-6424.
Reporter Elizabeth Stieber can be reached at 215-354-3036 or estieber@phillynews.com