5th Annual Oak Ridge Charity Golf Tournament

Casey Smyth is a native of Chico, CA; his family being figureheads of the community for decades. Casey was a star athlete at Chico High, (Class of 2003) racking up seven Varsity Letters, being named All-Section and All-League in football, and in baseball being twice named All-League, once named 2nd Team All-Section, and once 1st Team All-Section, along with also being named the Chico High Scholar Athlete of the Year. He was described by Kevin Dolan, Casey’s Assistant Coach on the Chico High Varsity Basketball team, as “the toughest player we ever coached.”

Casey went on to play collegiate baseball at Edgewood College in Madison, Wisconsin before transferring to Mendocino College for a season and then ultimately returning to Chico where he finished his collegiate playing days for the Chico State Wildcats. There he was an outfielder on the Chico State team that came within one strike of an NCAA Division II National Championship. Due to athletic prowess and, more importantly, his contagious dedication and energy, was named “Mr. Wildcat” during his senior season at Chico State.

In 2015, Casey married another Chico athletics legend in Kelli Payne (now Smyth), who is a member of the Butte College Athletic Hall of Fame. The two also own a business together, the Smyth Real Estate Team, through which they have served hundreds of clients with their specialized knowledge of and love for Chico and its surrounding areas.

Casey and Kelli found in each other the perfect pair of enthusiasm for all things sports, community, and life. Over the span of their marriage you’d be much more likely to find them playing basketball, softball, golf, or pickleball, hunting, fishing, snowboarding, wakeboarding, exercising, traveling, or just bouncing around Chico visiting friends than sitting on their couch at home. They both have a zest for life and are two who have truly and wholly lived life to the fullest.

They correctly decided that the world needed more Smyths and welcomed their first son, Cooper, in 2018, and their second, Tanner, in 2021. The boys, by no surprise, also refuse to sit still and can be found playing every sport Chico has to offer. They fight like crazy, but more importantly they fight for each other like crazy. Their parents’ tenacity and big hearts are evident in both the Smyth boys.

At the turn of the new year, Casey began complaining of what he believed were flu-like symptoms, but those symptoms quickly turned serious and on the morning of January 2, 2025 he was rushed to Enloe Medical Center. It was finally discovered that a viral infection had turned septic in Casey’s system, ultimately sending him into septic shock. He went into full organ failure and was put on a ventilator and dialysis along with undergoing multiple rounds of surgery attempting to locate the source of the infection. Those attempts were unsuccessful and it was determined that he required transfer to UC Davis Medical Center to undergo more advanced medical treatment.

Casey spent the following days fighting like crazy to beat the infection, and, finally, on January 15, after 13 days in the hospital and 5 surgeries, prayers were answered and Casey woke. He was stable enough to have his breathing tube removed, he spoke for the first time, and was immediately cracking jokes. The treatment that saved his life, however, also severely compromised his extremities, making amputations imminent. In true Casey fashion, rather than focus on what had and would happen to him, he was focused on doing whatever necessary to get back to Kelli and his boys. His words were that he was “ready for surgery and whatever comes with it.”

On January 30, Casey went into surgery, his eighth in 29 days, for his first round of amputations. Both of Casey’s legs were taken, as well as his right arm. Another round of amputations took Casey’s left arm.  Casey’s message remains that he is ready for whatever comes, he wants to get it over with so that he can start healing and get back to his family. To date, Casey has been in the hospital 49 days and is waiting to undergo his last surgery, #11. We estimate he will be in the hospital up to 65 days before being discharged to inpatient rehabilitation, an estimated extra two weeks before being reunited with his family outside hospital walls. Over 80 days in medical facilities.

This infection has taken parts of Casey, but it has not taken Casey. For those who know him, Casey is a strong, tough, kind, hilarious, compassionate, and resilient man who has made it his mission to take care of all around him. He is a devoted father and husband, a dedicated son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin, uncle, son-in-law, and brother-in-law, and just about the best friend you could ever ask for. The lives of Casey, Kelli, Cooper, and Tanner have forever changed and they will need to rely on the support of others after serving as the support for so many for so long.

On top of extensive medical bills and the upcoming expenses of Casey’s rehabilitation process, they will need to look toward making their home fully ADA-accessible, as well as prosthetics which allow Casey to return to an active life with his boys. All donated funds are going directly toward the aforementioned needs. Prosthetic limbs, of which Casey will require four, are estimated to range in cost from $10,000- $70,000. The average cost of making a home ADA-accessible is approximately $5,000, while the lifetime costs of rehabilitation services, prosthetic purchases, and outpatient services often exceed $500,000. Our goal is to remove as much of the financial burden from the Smyths as possible as well as to give Casey everything he needs to continue living a full, healthy, and comfortable life. Thank you for your support.