Caitlin Mary Callahan

June 19, 1970 - April 24, 2022

We are heartbroken to announce the loss of Caitlin Mary Callahan, our shining star, on April 24, 2022, in Vancouver. There are truly no words to describe the magical person Cait was and will forever be as a devoted wife, mother, daughter, sister, and auntie and a true friend to so very many.
Cait was born in 1970 in Vancouver, and appropriately, Good Morning Starshine was playing in the hospital delivery room when she came into the world. This became the perfect theme song for a little girl who quickly grew into the star of our family, both on the stage and off, who could literally light up a room when she walked into it.
Growing up in Victoria, Cait attended South Park and Monterey elementary schools and graduated from Oak Bay High in 1988. After a wild and wonderful gap year in Tokyo, she went on to complete a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Theatre at UVic, where she shone as the lead in a number of Phoenix Theatre productions and further developed her natural talent in theatrical makeup. This led to a spectacular 27-year career as a makeup artist and trainer, an adventure that took her all over the world, from Paris fashion week to Sundance Film Festival and back to Tokyo and beyond. She worked as a Senior Artist with MAC in Vancouver and Los Angeles for many years, and also served as the Director of International Training, based in New York City. She later returned to Vancouver as her home base for many more years in the industry as a trainer and media relations specialist.
Spending time with Cait always felt like a special occasion. She could turn the world on with her smile. She was a brilliant conversationalist, a caring listener, a perfect host, a storyteller beyond compare, and had a wonderful way of rejoicing in the humour of the everyday. She was breathtakingly beautiful, inside and out. Most important beyond anything in the world to Cait was her family: her husband Adrian, daughters Sophie and Edie, and her sweet puppy Hugo. She was happiest when they were all together at home, or on their many family adventures to places near and far.
Cait is survived by her husband Adrian Parkes, daughters Sophie and Edie Hennessey, mother Marilyn Callahan, father Dewey Callahan, sister Karen Loughran (Tony), nieces Amara, Sylvie, and Keira, nephew Aedan, the extended Parkes, McKay, Callahan and Wharf families, and many dear friends in Vancouver, Victoria and around the world. We will miss Cait forever, and we are all so very lucky to have known her.

"And remember, my sentimental friend, that a heart is not judged by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others."
To honour Cait's lifelong love of animals, donations may be made to the Victoria Humane Society in her name.