Scott Corey departed the physical world on Thursday, March 20th after a brutal but brief bout with cancer. He faced this transition with clarity and bravery at home with his lovely wife Sherry Nist Corey by his side to comfort him.

Scott was born to Callie May and Luther Corey, an adventurous couple from the Bluegrass State who moved to Vero Beach and opened Corey’s Pharmacy in 1956. Growing up in the family’s beachfront home near what is now known as The Moorings and later on Ocean Drive at the South end of Conn Beach, Scott spent his youth barefoot, exploring the beach and enjoying ocean activities. Under the tutelage of family friend Scott McCorkle, Chris Runge and others, Scott developed exceptional sailing skills at a young age, becoming a fearless competitor in both Hobie and Prindle catamaran regattas throughout both coasts of Florida and the Keys.

If Scott’s first passion was the beach and nature, his second passion was certainly music. Scott’s influences included the blind country picker Doc Watson, the pirate poet Jimmy Buffett, the spit and vinegar of the blues-driven Rolling Stones, and the late Vero crooner and strummer Doug Moss. From his early teens onward, wherever one saw Scott, there was likely the neck of a guitar within close reach. From playing and singing to young ladies on outdoor benches of various school campuses, to busking one summer on the streets of Nantucket, to performing as the opening act for comedian David Brenner at the University of Florida’s O’Connell Center, to playing in rustic pubs and juke joints around Australia’s Surfer’s Paradise and Hobart, Tasmania, Scott became a traveling troubadour of sorts.

Though Scott’s education began on the beach, his schooling commenced at Beachland Elementary and later at Saint Edward’s, where he played varsity soccer, graduating with the class of 1981. He then attended the University of Florida where he became what might be described as a mythical figure known as “Cottsy” among his fellow members of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. Scott later graduated from Florida Atlantic University.

After college Scott went on to adventurous work in the lifestyle publishing industry representing various national travel and leisure publications, and as the manager of Club Nautico’s Miami Beach location. He also served as a commercially licensed boat captain, worked in the recreational vehicle, commercial landscaping, and eco-tourism industries.

Scott was a well-read and avid observer of his surroundings with many eclectic, distinctive and worldly experiences and a sharp memory for details that served him to the very end. Scott’s old friends and new acquaintances will remember him as an unparalleled conversationalist, and a storyteller the likes of which may not have emerged from Vero Beach since the late great Waldo Sexton. His wry, honest take on the wins and losses of his own life and his keen eye for pointing out the comedic irony in the actions and compromised integrity of people and institutions at all levels of society didn’t just entertain but comforted us in times of chaos. They seemed to restore our faith in the fact that sometimes the little guys win in ways that the big guys can’t begin to understand.

In addition to his loving wife Sherry, Scott leaves behind his first wife Kelley Lang and their two sons, Luke Gibson Corey and Jacob Ashley Corey, who both share their father’s love for music. He also leaves his older sister Judyth Corey Dawson, his nephew Mark Frankenberger and nieces Sandy Frankenberger, Lauren Corey Geda and Hillary Corey. Scott was predeceased by his older brother, Mark “Buzzy” Corey, and his parents Callie May and Luther Corey.

One day each of us will be ready for another of Scott’s songs or stories and he’ll be on a bench or sitting on the edge of a boat somewhere, with that big smile, strumming away, singing “…there never was a horse like the Tennessee Stud.”