Jason was not his addiction
Jason Gryp was a painter, his passion evident in each brush stroke. His art shifted from bright to dark depending on his substance use, a reflection of his own struggles clear in the variation of his pieces.
Jason’s creativity went beyond the canvas. Music was central to his life. He had a vast collection that he incessantly listened to. Korn was his favorite band. Jason and his brother Levi loved attending live shows. On several occasions, the brothers managed to meet the bands and hangout with them after they performed. Jason had a skill for snagging the set list at the end of the show and collected over 40 of them, along with drumsticks and autographed ticket stubs. His most treasured possession was Corey Taylor’s autograph.
Holiday traditions and rituals were always quite special for Jason and his family. For Easter, Jason loved to hide the eggs for the annual egg hunt (and sequester a couple aside for himself). The family celebrated Thanksgiving with a large family dinner and a movie. For Christmas, Terri, Jason’s mother, bought advent calendars for Jason. She fondly remembers one particular Christmas when Jason was six years old. She had gotten him an advent calendar filled with chocolates. On the first day of December, when the calendar started, Jason opened the first window to find the chocolate was gone. He looked at his mother in confusion, only to find that not only was the first chocolate gone, but that Terri had eaten every single treat. He loved to remind her of the story, and every year afterward, even as an adult, Terri would buy him two calendars.
Alongside painting and music, Jason also loved cooking and sports. He worked as a line cook and chef. His passion for his work was clear in his careful skill, as he would make even the most ordinary burger beautiful, crafting flowers with lettuce, tomato, onions and pickles. Jason was rarely seen without his Chicago White Sox hat on. He could recount virtually any sport statistic, rattling off how many yards a player had in their career or their batting average at random.
Jason had a generous and loving heart. When Jason graduated from Metro High School, he walked straight to his mother in the audience and handed her the diploma. He said, “if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have graduated.” He was always helping people, often extending his home to those who had nowhere else to go. Jason enjoyed close relationships with his friend Mickey, his brother Levi, and his Aunt Tracy, among others. For a bit Jason and Tracy were roommates, and his mother Terri fondly recalls listening to them laugh while they shared tidbits about their day.
Substance use weakened Jason’s relationships, particularly with his children. He had a son, Dylan, and three daughters, Danika, Sofia, and Elora. His proudest accomplishment was his children, and he was there for every birth to cut the cord. Jason desperately wanted to recover for his family. He dreamed of working at a fancy restaurant and being closer with his family. Jason always wanted to have a meal with his whole family at least once a month. Now, in his memory, his family congregates to eat once a month. Terri misses his laugh, his antics, his beautiful blue eyes, and his voice.
Jason’s mother, Terri Parker, provided the information for this narrative
March 24, 1983-March 12, 2023-Age 39
Portrait Artist: Jeremy Hebbel
Narrative Writer: Livia Cohen
