Some people live seventeen years and touch more lives than others do in seventy. Noah John Grimes was one of those people. Born full of energy, warmth, and a quality his family described as extraordinary compassion, he left this world on August 19, 2020, and left behind a grief that spread quietly through Hinsdale, Illinois, through the halls of Piedmont High School in California, through hockey rinks and family tables and every place where someone had been lucky enough to know him.
If you’ve been searching for the Noah Grimes obituary, you’ve likely come because you loved him, knew him, or want to understand who he was and how to honor his memory properly. This page brings together everything that’s publicly known about Noah’s life, his family, his service details, and the ways you can still pay tribute today.
Who Was Noah Grimes?
A Life That Touched Everyone Around Him
Noah John Grimes was a seventeen-year-old from Hinsdale, Illinois — a young man at the start of everything. His family described him as “beautiful, brilliant, full of charisma, and a smile that lit up the world.” That’s not the language of a formal notice. That’s a family trying to translate something that doesn’t easily fit into words: the specific and irreplaceable quality of a person who made people feel better just by being around them.
He was an athlete. He was a writer. He was a friend to many and, by every account, someone who cared deeply about the people in his life in a way that set him apart even among his peers.
 Fast Facts at a Glance
- Full name: Noah John Grimes
- Date of birth: June 9, 2003
- Place of birth: Lake Forest, Illinois
- Date of passing: August 19, 2020
- Age at passing: 17
- Home: Hinsdale, Illinois
- School: Piedmont High School, Piedmont, California
- Church: Christ Church of Oak Brook
- Parents: Steven and Sally (Johns) Grimes
- Sister: Isabel Grimes
- Burial: All Saints Cemetery Mausoleum, Bourbonnais, Illinois
- Memorial charity: Brain and Behavior Research Foundation
Noah Grimes’s Early Life and Family Background
 Born in Lake Forest, Raised in Hinsdale
Noah was born on June 9, 2003, in Lake Forest, Illinois — a community on the North Shore of Lake Michigan known for its close-knit character and strong sense of family. He grew up in Hinsdale, one of the western suburbs of Chicago, a place that shaped his early years and remained home no matter how far his schooling eventually took him.
That detail matters. Even while attending Piedmont High School out in California, his official residence was Hinsdale. This was where his parents lived, where his roots ran deep, and where the community would eventually gather in August 2020 to say goodbye.
His Parents, Steven and Sally Grimes
Steven and Sally Grimes — Sally being born Sally Johns — raised Noah with the kind of values that showed clearly in who he became. His compassion wasn’t accidental. His willingness to be a friend to many, his care for the world around him, his sense that other people’s feelings mattered — these qualities are built at home, and Steven and Sally built them carefully.
The choice of memorial donation — the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation — reflects the family’s commitment to something larger than themselves. More on that later.
 Sister Isabel and the Family He Loved
Noah’s sister Isabel was a student at the University of Michigan at the time of his passing. The two siblings were part of a family that, by all accounts, was genuinely close. Family wasn’t just a circumstance for Noah — it was, by his family’s own testimony, one of the things he cared about most. His compassion showed itself first at home, and that’s usually where it counts the most.
The Young Man Behind the Noah Grimes Obituary
 A Beautiful, Brilliant Personality
His family’s description of Noah in the official obituary uses the word “charisma” — and that’s not a word families tend to reach for unless it really fits. Charisma is the quality that makes a room change when you walk in, that makes people lean toward you in conversation, that makes strangers feel like they already know you. At seventeen, Noah had it.
He also had something rarer: the ability to combine that outward brightness with genuine depth. He wasn’t just charming — he was caring. He wasn’t just popular — he was thoughtful. That combination is unusual at any age.
His Love for Classic Rock – An Old Soul at Seventeen
One of the most distinctive details in every account of Noah’s life is that he was described as “an old soul” who loved classic rock music. In 2020, at seventeen, that meant reaching back past his own generation’s soundtrack to find something that resonated more deeply. Led Zeppelin. The Beatles. The Rolling Stones. Whatever specific artists spoke to him, the instinct to look to that era of music says something about how he heard the world — with more depth, more patience, and more appreciation for things that last than most teenagers develop.
That’s what an old soul means. It means you appreciate things that take time to understand.
Eight Years as a Hockey Goalie
For eight years, Noah played goalie on his hockey team. Think about what that means. Eight years is more than half of a seventeen-year life. This wasn’t a casual hobby — it was a defining commitment. And the position matters too. A goalie doesn’t score goals. A goalie takes hits. A goalie’s job is to protect, to hold the line, to be the last person standing between the team and defeat.
That role — protective, steady, the person others depend on — fits seamlessly with everything else described about him. His most remarkable quality was his compassion, his family said. He was someone who carried other people. Hockey, for eight years, was where he practiced that.
A Gifted Writer With a Rare Compassionate Spirit
Noah was also recognized as a gifted writer. Writing at its best is an act of empathy — the attempt to put yourself in another person’s experience and render it truthfully. It makes sense that someone described primarily as compassionate would find writing a natural expression. He noticed things. He felt things. He could probably say them in ways others couldn’t.
His family chose the word “remarkable” for this quality — his compassion for his family, his friends, and the world around him. That’s not a small thing. Compassion for the world at seventeen is a quality that most people spend their whole lives trying to develop and still don’t quite get there.
Noah Grimes at Piedmont High School
From Illinois to California – A Student Making His Mark
At the time of his passing, Noah was a student at Piedmont High School in Piedmont, California — a school in the Oakland hills that serves a small, tight-knit community. He’d made the journey from the Chicago suburbs to the Bay Area for school, carrying Hinsdale in his identity even while building a new chapter in California.
His passing in Piedmont on August 19, 2020, means that his final chapter was written there, in a place he’d chosen to be. Two communities — Hinsdale and Piedmont — were connected by his life and united in their grief.
Faith and Church at Christ Church of Oak Brook
Noah’s faith was part of who he was. He attended Christ Church of Oak Brook — a congregation in the western suburbs of Chicago that reflected his family’s religious life and grounded his values. The memorial service was officiated by Rev. Todd Peeler, connecting his faith community to the formal ceremony of farewell.
Faith doesn’t have to be loud to be real. For Noah, it was part of the foundation — not necessarily the most visible part, but present and meaningful.
Noah Grimes’s Passing – August 19, 2020
A Community in Grief
Noah John Grimes passed away on Wednesday, August 19, 2020, in Piedmont, California. He was seventeen years old. The news spread through Hinsdale and Piedmont and beyond — through hockey teams, school communities, church families, and the wider network of people whose lives he’d touched in his short time.
August 2020 was already a difficult month for the world — the COVID-19 pandemic had reshaped how communities could gather, mourn, and support one another. Even in that constrained environment, people found ways to come together for Noah.
Preceded in Death by His Beloved Grandparents
Noah was preceded in death by his grandparents: Mr. T.K. and Annie Johns on his mother’s side, and Dr. James and Joan Grimes on his father’s side. He will be laid to rest beside them at All Saints Cemetery Mausoleum in Bourbonnais — a detail that speaks to the continuity of family, the way generations rest near each other, and the quiet comfort of not being alone even in death.
Funeral and Memorial Service Details
Visitation at Sullivan Funeral Home, Hinsdale
The first visitation was held from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. on Friday, August 28, 2020, at Sullivan Funeral Home, located at 60 South Grant Street, Hinsdale, Illinois 60521. This allowed the Hinsdale community — the neighbors, the friends, the local families who had known Noah and his parents — to come and pay their respects in the place he called home.
Funeral Service at Clancy-Gernon Funeral Home, Bourbonnais
The following day, Saturday, August 29, 2020, a second visitation was held from 10:00 a.m. at Clancy-Gernon Funeral Home, 295 Main St. NW, Bourbonnais, Illinois 60914. The funeral service followed at 11:00 a.m., officiated by Rev. Todd Peeler. Bourbonnais, in Kankakee County, held significance for the Grimes family — it is where his grandparents are buried, and where the permanent chapter of Noah’s resting place would be written.
Two services, in two communities, honored the full breadth of his connections. Masks and social distancing were required in keeping with CDC guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic.
 Entombment at All Saints Cemetery Mausoleum
Following the funeral service, Noah was entombed at All Saints Cemetery Mausoleum in Bourbonnais. He was laid to rest beside his beloved grandparents — T.K. and Annie Johns, and Dr. James and Joan Grimes. The presence of family nearby, even in death, was clearly important to those who loved him.
Rev. Todd Peeler and the Service That Honored His Life
Rev. Todd Peeler officiated the funeral service. A pastor who understood the family’s faith and could speak to who Noah was within that context was the right person to lead that service. The ceremony would have been a reflection of everything his family knew and cherished about him — his compassion, his faith, his extraordinary personality
Survivors Who Cherish Noah’s Memory
H3: Parents, Sister, Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins
Noah is survived by the people who knew and loved him most:
- Parents: Steven and Sally Grimes of Hinsdale, Illinois
- Sister: Isabel Grimes, student at the University of Michigan
- Aunt and Uncle: Susan and Jon Ricker of Evansville, Indiana
- Aunt and Uncle: Mike and Jenn Grimes of Cleveland, Ohio
- Aunt: Jennifer White of Michigan City, Indiana
- Cousins: Tristan Ricker, Trevor Ricker, Trisha White, and Angela White
Each of these people carries Noah with them. Each of them lost someone specific, someone irreplaceable. The family that shaped him now carries him forward.
Honoring Noah – Memorial Donations to the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation
What Is the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation?
In lieu of flowers, Noah’s family asked that memorials be made to the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation (BBRF), accessible at bbrfoundation.org. This is a meaningful and deliberate choice.
The Brain and Behavior Research Foundation — formerly known as NARSAD, the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression — is the world’s leading private funder of mental health research. They award grants to scientists investigating the causes, treatments, and potential cures for psychiatric illnesses including depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, autism, and others. The organization’s mission is to alleviate suffering caused by mental illness through rigorous scientific research.
Choosing BBRF as the memorial charity reflects a commitment by Noah’s family to a cause that matters deeply to many families who have experienced loss the way the Grimes family did. Mental health research is underfunded relative to its importance, and every donation moves the needle.
How to Make a Donation in Noah’s Memory
If you’d like to honor Noah’s memory through a donation to the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation, you can do so at bbrfoundation.org. The family specifically created a personal campaign page for donations in Noah’s name. When you give, you’re not just following a family’s request — you’re contributing to research that might one day prevent the kind of suffering that ended his life too soon, and that affects millions of families across the country.
A donation in someone’s memory is one of the most meaningful things you can do. It says: because you lived, something good will continue to happen in the world.
How to Find the Noah Grimes Obituary Online
Multiple People Named Noah Grimes – How to Find the Right One
If you’ve searched for the Noah Grimes obituary and found several different results, that’s because Noah is a common name and Grimes is a common surname. The search results currently show at least three distinct individuals:
- Noah John Grimes (2003–2020): Age 17, of Hinsdale, Illinois. Passed August 19, 2020. This is the person this page is about.
- Noah Lee Grimes (1967–2018): Age 51, of Fort Smith, Arkansas and later Lubbock, Texas. Passed September 18, 2018.
- Noah Grimes IV (1962–2018): Age 56, of Gary, Indiana. Passed May 21, 2018.
To find the correct Noah John Grimes obituary, include “Hinsdale,” “Illinois,” “Piedmont,” or “2020” in your search to filter the results.
Official Online Memorials and Tribute Walls
The primary online memorial platforms where Noah’s official obituary is hosted include:
- Sullivan Family Funeral Homes: sullivanfamilyfuneralhomes.com — the first funeral home that handled the Hinsdale visitation
- Clancy-Gernon Funeral Home: clancygernon.com/obituaries/Noah-Grimes — the funeral home that handled the Bourbonnais service
- Echovita: echovita.com — a memorial platform that has published his full obituary
- The Hinsdalean: thehinsdalean.com — the local Hinsdale newspaper that published his obituary
- Shaw Local / Daily Journal: shawlocal.com — the Bourbonnais and Kankakee County newspaper
Each of these pages has a tribute wall or guestbook where family and friends can leave condolences, share memories, and support the Grimes family.
How to Leave a Condolence Message for the Grimes Family
Leaving a condolence online is simple and genuinely meaningful. Families who have lost someone often return to these pages — sometimes years later — and find comfort in knowing that others remember and care. Here’s how:
- Visit one of the memorial pages listed above (Sullivan Funeral Home or Clancy-Gernon are the most official)
- Find the “Tribute Wall,” “Guestbook,” or “Share a Memory” section
- Write your message — it doesn’t need to be long or perfect
- Submit it with your name
Even if you find the page years after Noah’s passing, your message will still be there and will still mean something to his family.
How to Write a Condolence Message for a Family Like the Grimes
What to Say When Words Feel Hard
Condolence messages are hard to write. There’s a fear of saying the wrong thing, of being inadequate to the weight of someone’s grief. The truth is: showing up matters more than saying it perfectly. A message that tries is better than no message at all.
Some guidelines that help:
- Be specific: If you knew Noah, share a specific memory. “I remember when he…” is worth more than a thousand generic phrases.
- Acknowledge the loss directly: Don’t dance around it. “I’m so sorry for your loss” is simple and true.
- Don’t minimize: Avoid phrases like “everything happens for a reason” or “he’s in a better place now.” These can feel dismissive to those in fresh grief.
- Keep it about them: This is about the family and Noah, not about your own feelings.
- It’s okay to be brief: A few genuine sentences beat a long message that feels hollow.
Examples of Meaningful Condolence Messages
Here are some examples of the kind of messages that bring real comfort to grieving families:
“I played hockey with Noah and I never knew a goalie with more heart. He protected everyone on that ice and off it. I’m so sorry for this loss.”
“I went to school with Noah and I remember how different he was — in the best way. He actually listened when you talked to him. The world needs more of that, and I’ll miss knowing he was in it.”
“Steven and Sally, I can’t imagine what these days are like for your family. Noah’s compassion showed in everything he did. Please know that his classmates carry him with them.”
“To the Grimes family — Noah’s love for classic rock and his way of making everyone around him feel like they mattered was something special. I’m holding you all in my heart.”
Grief Resources for Those Who Knew Noah Grimes
Supporting One Another After a Young Person’s Death
The death of a seventeen-year-old sends a specific kind of shock through a community. Friends his age are at an age when death doesn’t feel real yet — and suddenly it is. Classmates, teammates, and others who knew Noah may be experiencing grief for the first time in their lives.
If you or someone you know is struggling after Noah’s passing, you don’t have to navigate that alone. Some resources that may help:
- The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline: Call or text 988 — available 24/7 for anyone in emotional distress
- GriefShare: griefshare.org — a nationwide network of grief support groups
- The Dougy Center: dougy.org — specializing in grief support for children, teens, and young adults
- School counselors and mental health professionals: Piedmont High School and Hinsdale-area schools have support staff who are trained for exactly this kind of loss
 Where to Find Help During This Time
If you’re a young person who was close to Noah and is finding grief difficult to carry, please talk to someone. His family chose the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation as their memorial charity because mental health matters — profoundly and practically. Seeking support is not weakness. It’s exactly the kind of self-care that honors both your own life and the memory of someone like Noah, who clearly cared deeply about the people around him.
Keeping Noah’s Memory Alive
What His Family Wants the World to Know About Him
In the words that his family chose for his obituary — simple, direct, clearly written from the heart — there’s a picture of someone who mattered in specific ways. He wasn’t described by titles or achievements or milestones. He was described by who he was:
Beautiful. Brilliant. Charismatic. An old soul. A gifted writer. An athlete. A friend to many. Compassionate toward his family, his friends, and the world around him.
That’s the summary they chose. Not what he did, but who he was. And that says everything about what they valued in him and what they’re asking the world to remember.
The best way to keep Noah’s memory alive is to try to be a little more like him. To listen more carefully. To care more genuinely. To protect the people around you the way a goalie protects the net. To notice things and write them down. To love the music that lasts because it deserved to.
FAQ – Common Questions About the Noah Grimes Obituary
Who was Noah John Grimes? Noah John Grimes was a seventeen-year-old from Hinsdale, Illinois, who passed away on August 19, 2020, in Piedmont, California. He was a student at Piedmont High School, an eight-year hockey goalie, a gifted writer, and someone described by his family as possessing extraordinary compassion for everyone around him. He was born on June 9, 2003, in Lake Forest, Illinois, to Steven and Sally Grimes.
How old was Noah Grimes when he died? Noah Grimes was 17 years old at the time of his passing on August 19, 2020. He had been born on June 9, 2003, meaning he was just two months past his seventeenth birthday when he died.
Where was Noah Grimes buried? Noah John Grimes was entombed at All Saints Cemetery Mausoleum in Bourbonnais, Illinois, following his funeral service at Clancy-Gernon Funeral Home. He was laid to rest beside his grandparents — T.K. and Annie Johns, and Dr. James and Joan Grimes — who had predeceased him.
What charity was chosen to honor Noah Grimes’s memory? In lieu of flowers, Noah’s family requested memorial donations be made to the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation (bbrfoundation.org). The BBRF is the world’s leading private funder of mental health research, supporting scientific investigation into psychiatric illnesses including depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and more.
How can I find the official Noah Grimes obituary online? The official obituary for Noah John Grimes (2003–2020) of Hinsdale, Illinois can be found on the Sullivan Family Funeral Home website, the Clancy-Gernon Funeral Home website, The Hinsdalean newspaper, and Shaw Local’s Daily Journal. When searching online, include “Hinsdale,” “Illinois,” or “2020” to distinguish him from other people named Noah Grimes in search results.
How can I leave a condolence for the Grimes family? You can leave a condolence message for Noah’s family by visiting the tribute walls at the Sullivan Family Funeral Home page or the Clancy-Gernon Funeral Home memorial page. The Echovita memorial page also has a condolences section. These pages remain active, and messages left years later are still seen and appreciated by grieving families.
When were the funeral services held for Noah Grimes? Two services were held. The first visitation was at Sullivan Funeral Home in Hinsdale, Illinois, from 4 to 7 p.m. on Friday, August 28, 2020. The second visitation and funeral service were held at Clancy-Gernon Funeral Home in Bourbonnais, Illinois, on Saturday, August 29, 2020, beginning with visitation at 10 a.m. and the funeral service at 11 a.m., officiated by Rev. Todd Peeler.