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Love Like Casey: Family of Fairfield man aims to prevent suicides and promote mental health

The family has started a nonprofit called Love Like Casey to help build a mental health wellness center, which they say was Casey's dream.

Frank Recchia

Aug 23, 2025, 6:52 PM

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Jeff Stopa, Sr. says Good Friday will never be the same.

"That's the day our son, Casey, took his own life last year," Stopa told News 12. "The pain of losing him is the worst thing we've ever gone through. It's an unimaginable pain and sorrow."

In a tragic coincidence, Stopa says he witnessed a different man die by suicide earlier this month on the Metro-North train tracks in Fairfield.

"I wanted to stop him, but it happened too fast – and it just goes to show that suicides are happening all around us all the time. We need to come together and do something about this tragic trend," Stopa said.

The family has started a nonprofit called Love Like Casey to help build a mental health wellness center, which they say was Casey's dream.

The family urges anyone who's thinking of harming themselves to call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988.

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