Joshua Daniel Weston

Kind-hearted, adventurous, and goofy, Joshua Daniel Weston lived a life rich in family and friends. One of a kind, Josh was incredibly generous; he always had other's backs and was willing to give anything to make life a bit easier for them. An extrovert and risk-taker, Josh relished adventure, especially in the outdoors. He made friends easily and treasured his family dearly. A cherished son, brother, nephew, father, cousin, and friend, Josh will long be remembered and so very missed.

1984 proved to be a year of many firsts, including the Space Shuttle Discovery's maiden flight and first untethered space walk. With an iconic Super Bowl advertisement, the Apple Macintosh personal computer made its debut, and Britain and Ireland's top pop musicians gathered in a Notting Hill studio to form Band Aid, recording the epic song "Do They Know It's Christmas" in order to raise money for famine relief in Ethiopia. While Ghostbusters, Gremlins, and The Karate Kid dominated the movie screens, Magnum, P.I., Cagney and Lacey, and Knight Rider were the most watched television shows. It was during this exciting time that Al and Dodie Weston welcomed their son Josh and his twin brother Jon on December 16 in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Born two months early, Jon was one minute older and the bigger of the twins, but Josh was stronger. After spending nine weeks in the hospital, Josh joined his twin brother, older brother AJ and sister Emilie at home. In time, younger brother Jordan was born, completing the family.

Josh grew up strong and healthy and was the comic of the family. Though a risk taker who was willing to try anything, he was also accident-prone. Whenever he heard "don't do it" or "no one would be willing to…" Josh was up and at it, welcoming the challenge and the potential injuries that came with it. He suffered a compound fracture in his leg while dancing off the couch as a youngster while his folks were away and Emilie was babysitting. She would say he was always more adventurous when Mom and Dad were gone.

In addition to his parents and siblings, Josh enjoyed a special relationship with Aunt Lynn. "Auntie" was the only one he would want to help him, especially when he was injured; she was his hero. In 1986, when his father had leukemia, the kids spent a lot of time at Auntie's house and became very close with her kids. Just a few years later, when her husband died suddenly in his early 40's, the kids' bonds grew even closer.

The boys enjoyed many adventures, including looking for antique bottles anywhere the went, especially old dump sites. One time, after visiting Auntie's house, Josh's mom got a call from her, sharing that their goldfish was missing. When asked if he knew where the fish was, Josh put his hand over his chest pocket, covering the fish, and said he didn't know anything about it. Like his Grandpa Weston, Josh also liked to collect antiques. Many hours were spent on the hunt, shopping for antiques and collecting coins, old bottles, and rocks/minerals.

Josh's family lived on Parkhurst NW and finally moved to Winans, NW. Josh attended West Side Christian from kindergarten through fourth grade. He then went to Cummings Elementary before continuing through Grandville Public Schools. During his high school years, Josh was a 112 and 119-pound wrestler. He loved the sport and his teammates, whom he stayed in close touch with as an adult. They enjoyed going to matches together every so often, and Josh even competed in the Meijer State wrestling games as an adult.

A proud graduate of the Grandville High School class of 2004, Josh loved to hunt and fish. He was a very good brook trout fisherman and loved his fishing trips up north to Pigeon River State Park or Indian River for trout opener with family and friends. After his cousin Dave moved out of state, Josh was concerned about his uncle Dan and made sure he was always invited to their trip. Whether at Green Lake near Grattan, in Sand Creek by the house, at Uncle Butch's, or up in Newaygo, the time outdoors was always a pleasure.

After high school, Josh started working security and was eventually placed at Grand Rapids Home for Veterans, later joined by his brother Jordan. He just loved it there and held the veterans in a special place in his heart. They were his close friends, and he enjoyed taking them fishing, hunting, and eating at BW3. He loved deer camp and the tradition of watching Escanaba in the Moonlight.

Josh married in 2016 and it blessed him with two beautiful daughters. Kinsley and Ariah were the loves of his life. A loving and caring father, Josh was very active with the girls, always willing to do diapers, dress them up, and do art projects together. Kinsley only wanted "My dad!" to help her.

A man of unique tastes and talents, Josh enjoyed a wide variety a wide variety of music, including Country and 90's songs. He had a knack for remembering the obscure songs and their lyrics. The same was true for movies. He could pull off one-liners like no one else. He loved pickles and anything pickled, including eggs, sausage, vegetables, and fish. He and AJ would pickle things together. AJ said his supply would last him a year; Josh's would last a month. Once, when diving into a memorable Swedish dish of fermented fish, Josh had to open it outside. While others tried a tiny bite, Josh ate two entire fish. He loved cottage cheese, making horseradish, and putting Frank's RedHot on everything! Josh liked unique foods, but he wasn't a very good cook. His legendary kitchen capers included baking a ham with the plastic film still on it, leaving the cardboard under pizza, browning meat with the little napkin, and making squirrel stew and leaving the feet on.

In quieter times, Josh liked going to the library and searching for books and enjoyed books on tape. He liked collecting and appreciating military history and badges, which he learned from Grandpa Larson. He appreciated collecting even more so when he started working at the VA. Josh also loved movies; The Goonies was his all-time favorite movie, and he liked watching A River Runs Through It with his brothers. He liked attending the Ultimate Fishing Show, the Fly Fishing Film Show, and the Gun and Knife Show with his dad and brothers.

A humble man, family was always important to Josh. Even when he wrestled with his own struggles and life proved difficult, despite pulling away from family and friends, he always held them closely in his heart. Though our days with Josh were far too few, we will long treasure the gift of having him in our lives. May we always remember Josh's love, generosity, goofiness, and sense of adventure. In each moment we cast our lines in hopes of catching a lunker, give of ourselves to others, cheer on Kinsley's and Ariah's endeavors, and with the smell of pickled foods, we will fondly remember Josh at his very best.