‘Death to my 20s’ - Mortician marks 30th birthday with funeral party

Several weeks ago, Cody Johnson-Brown, a mortician and executive assistant to Justice Minister Delroy Chuck, survived a car crash on her way to work.

The experience left her reflective - especially with her 30th birthday on the horizon. So, to welcome her 30s and 'mourn' the end of her 20s, she hosted a funeral-inspired black-and-white party, complete with a casket. Last Saturday, she invited guests whom she believes would have showed up at her funeral, had she not survived the crash. The casket was lined with images of her in her 20s.

"I decided that if I lived to see 30, I would definitely do a birthday celebration, because I've been through so much in life, that I believe reaching 30 is a milestone. [It's] not just another birthday," Johnson-Brown told THE STAR at her 'Death to My Twenties' birthday celebration, which was held at Devon House in St Andrew.

"After the car accident, I was unconscious for a bit, and I decided that even if I couldn't celebrate on my actual birthday [April 9], I was still going to do something - because life is short, and I'm going to celebrate every moment of it," she said.

With funeral-like programmes titled 'In Loving Memory of Cody's Youth' on the front page, and dated April 9, 1995 to April 9, 2025 with 'Happy 30th Birthday RIP 20s,' guests were in for a treat, with DJs RichRocc and Hey Enzoooo playing tunes.

Johnson-Brown said the inspiration behind the black and white cake was deeply symbolic to her as well, which reflected the duality of life itself: "the light and the darkness; the joy and the pain; the past and the future".

"Together, black and white tell my full story, one of contrast and completion. The cake isn't just dessert, it's a bold artistic statement. It mirrors the theme of the celebration: laying my past to rest and welcoming the next chapter with grace and gratitude. Black represents the mourning of my 20s, a decade filled with trials, heartache, and challenges that tested my faith, my strength, and my will to keep going. It signifies the hard moments I've overcome, the losses I've endured, and the growth that only comes through struggle," Johnson-Brown said.

Of course, in true Jamaican style, the event climaxed with food typically served at the end of a funeral, especially in rural parts of the island, including curried goat and rice and peas. During her address, she revealed that Angela and Clayton Fuller, long perceived as her parents, had actually adopted her at age three after her biological parents died. Angela is, in fact, her maternal aunt.

"My aunt and her husband came in at that time, and not one day I ever felt like I was not their biological child. I'm here today because they decided to step up. I'm here today because they wanted to ensure that my mother's wish came through. I hope I made you guys proud," Johnson-Brown told them.

She added:"It has been a journey. It was a journey, but it made me into the woman I am. I don't know my mother, and I wish I did, but I do not regret being a part of their family."

Johnson-Brown's husband, Renardo Brown, who is sports reporter in the RJRGLEANER Communications Group, shared that he was simply happy she was still around to celebrate not only her milestone birthday but also their fourth wedding anniversary, both on April 9.

"I think tonight and just the entrance (Johnson-Brown arrived at the event in a hearse) somehow sums up who Cody is. She is 'out there,' extravagant, extra, but she's also very loving, very caring, and someone who will go all the way for the people who she really cares about," he added.