Justin Kase

05/14/2026

05/06/2026

05/04/2026

I was really sad to hear about the passing of Jimmi Melton.

I remember interviewing him multiple times downtown back when I worked at WINK News.

I can't remember ever going to a music walk downtown and not seeing Jimmi there jamming out on those steps where he always performed.

Recently, we caught up with Jimmi and spoke with him about grief for our Valerie's House segment called Grief on the Street.

One of our Teen Ambassadors was asking people which emotions they associate with grief, and Jimmi was happy to share with us what he thought.

As for the thing that I'll always remember about him besides his music, it was his pride in the new story that was done on him by Gulf Coast News.

He would bring it up to me every time I saw him. He was so proud of this moment and of this story: https://youtu.be/_GGNFltBLo4?si=Wb5c69Vz4yjh068r

10/10/2025

Sometimes I feel like John the Savage

Sometimes I feel like John the Savage, mourning a world so ravaged it forgets how to hope.

The earth is tired, its people trading holiness for hunger, their souls for the fleeting thrill of the flesh. They call it freedom. They call it love. But it’s only decay disguised as light.

We were called to be better, to hold the hand of God, yet I watch them let go, one by one, to join the fiery dance with the devil.

And John—his feet become the compass, turning slowly in death’s quiet wind, searching for Heaven and finding only nothingness. He wants to believe in God, to feel the warmth of hope, but he’s met with silence and sin. I see him, and I see myself.

I wrestle between faith and despair, between surrender and rebellion. One hand reaches for Heaven, the other is pulled by the depths of despair.

Is there anyone left who feels the ache of right and wrong? Who longs for love that is holy, honest, and unafraid to call out the darkness?

I don’t want the kind of love that flatters the senses and starves the soul. Love is patient. Love endures. Love waits because it is sacred.

The soul is a covenant, a light meant to meet another light. But how can two become one when one has burned itself to ash?

So I whisper to this brave new world: I’ve never known another more like me than John the Savage.

His feet turned in search of Heaven, and I pray mine still might find it.

09/30/2025

This November, you’re invited to a very special opportunity to see Valerie’s House. 💛

Join us for our Open House and step inside the Family is Forever Home — the space where grieving children and families come together to find connection, hope, and healing.

It’s a chance to meet our team, walk through the rooms where stories are shared, and see how the community helps us make sure no child grieves alone.