Obituary of Luke Colson Carlisle

Luke Colson Carlisle, born October 30, 1988 took his own life on the morning of  June 24, 2019. Luke suffered mightily with schizophrenia over the last 4 years, a fate he shared with his paternal grandmother, Joycelyn Carlisle, who passed away earlier this year at age 90. Luke was a beloved son, brother, uncle, nephew, cousin and friend to so many. He was passionate about the rights of marginalized people and spoke and wrote eloquently about the injustices in our fallen world. Following graduation from the University of Florida, he set out for a year long stint with Americorps tutoring migrant children in the Salinas Valley of California. Returning to Florida, he volunteered nightly with a men’s shelter, serving meals, washing dishes and just listening to the men and their stories. A graduate of Terrace Community School and King High School’s International Baccalaureate program, he followed his sisters to UF despite the fact he had been a huge FSU fan earlier on. He loved playing baseball and soccer, street hockey and Poker (even participating in the World Series of Poker). Happily, he could claim an intramural championship while at UF – in coed Softball! He loved his large extended family and often raucous family gatherings. His sense of humor and quick wit, coupled with his compassion and tenderness, will be missed by many.

A Celebration of Luke’s life will be held Friday, June 28, 2019 at St. James United Methodist Church, 16202 Bruce B Downs Blvd, at 3 pm with the Rev. Brian James officiating.

Luke is survived by his parents, Jack and Sharon, his sister Erin Tighe and her husband Patrick , nieces Molly and Maggie, sister Emily Carlisle,  foster niece Elyssa Morataya, and a gaggle of uncles, aunts, cousins, and many friends whose lives are forever changed by knowing and loving him, and by his adoring faithful border collie, Zoe Grace.

Donations can be made in his memory to Metropolitan Ministries, 2002 N Florida Avenue, Tampa, FL (metromin.org) or National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI) at nami.org.