Julie-Rae King: Soulmate. Joyful. Theatre geek. Pasta lover. Born April 7, 1991, in Toronto; died Aug. 18, 2021, in Toronto from complications caused by a pulmonary embolism; aged 30.
Julie-Rae King.Courtesy of family
Julie-Rae King blazed through life with vivaciousness and enthusiasm. When she smiled, her face would become all cheeks and teeth, a radiant beacon of warmth to those around her. Called Jules by her friends, she was a fierce and compassionate soul and she brought boundless positivity everywhere she went. While small in stature, her personality filled a room. She also had a loveable impish quality. When I began teaching online from home, she’d listen to my Grade 4 lessons at the door, text me answers to the questions and demand a grade.
Julie-Rae’s love of school and learning stemmed from her childhood where she was, unashamedly, a teacher’s pet. A proud graduate of TanenbaumCHAT high school, she relished the opportunity for extra credits or additional extension projects. The eldest daughter of Shira Bernholtz and Leon King, she grew up alongside her sister, Toby, in a nurturing household, entrenched in the values of feminism, independence and respect
Julie-Rae spent 19 years at Camp Gesher, first as a camper, then as a counsellor and finally two years as the camp’s Technical Director. There she developed a close-knit community of loyal friends that became like family. It was also where we met when I was a visiting counsellor from Scotland in 2012. We quickly became besotted with each other and our love spanned continents. After navigating a long-distance relationship, Julie-Rae moved to Scotland for two years and then we settled in Canada to start a life together.
She was an anchor for friends, a landing pad of stability and reassurance. During marriage classes, she said she wanted to be the house where people gathered and felt welcomed. Not, as the rabbi noted, own the house, but be the house. Wherever Julie-Rae laid down foundations, others found love. It is a tragedy that our wedding, twice postponed owing to the pandemic, will never happen.
Julie-Rae was a theatre fanatic. Her favourite musical was West Side Story and she regularly attended the National Ballet of Canada’s productions with her mum. Being comically tone-deaf, her true calling lay not on the stage, but behind the scenes producing. She studied costume design at the Creative School in Toronto, winning a prize for excellence in her final year. Later, she became the stage manager/technical director/Jill-of-all-trades at Bravo Academy, nurturing the next generation of artists. She was particularly proud of managing Drama 101, a Patron’s Pick in the 2019 Toronto Fringe Festival.
Her love of theatre also shaped her taste in music. Her infamous library contained a truly eclectic mix of off-Broadway b-sides, obscure cast recordings of long-forgotten productions and theatre classics. A longstanding ban among her friends meant Julie-Rae was forbidden from controlling road trip playlists. However, they’d all admit that belting out a showstopper together on road trips wouldn’t be unwelcome from time to time.
Her organizational skills were legendary. Planning something? Julie-Rae would whip up a spreadsheet, eagerly showing off her custom formulas and formatting to anyone nearby. When arranging her shiva, many noted that it took the combined effort of five people to schedule what just Julie-Rae could have planned on her own.
While I had the honour of being the love of her life, her love for pasta was a close second. Julie-Rae would seek out Toronto’s finest fettuccine, look longingly at linguine and find profound comfort in KD. She would regularly make pasta dough from scratch and proudly sported a tortellini key chain. It was not uncommon for Julie-Rae to be found shamelessly tucking into some leftover spaghetti for breakfast.
Julie-Rae collapsed at home, fell into a coma and died peacefully in hospital two weeks later surrounded by family. While her life was cut short, her impact was immense. As an organ donor, her corneas will be used to restore the sight of others. It was our honour and privilege to have known her, learned from her and loved her.
Alex Barnes is Julie-Rae’s fiancé.
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