JOSHUA MICHAEL WILLUHN

Born: August 20, 1991 in Riverside, CA
Passed unto the Lord: March 9, 2019 Houston, TX

Small Narrative of the beginning
Joshua travelled a lot during his growing years, starting in California, then to Hawaii, Denmark, Idaho, Nevada, Louisiana, Colorado, California, Colorado, Missouri, Texas, Colorado, and settling in Texas. He landed in Houston, TX which he grew to love and always said he would never move from here. Josh’s love for Houston was as a large sports town which he followed very closely and the diversity of the population, he always said that there was not one major ethnic group and all sides were represented. One of his core values was to make sure that everyone had their points heard.

Josh always knew where he was with the Lord even at a young age and while he did not have a passion for organized religion, he knew who his savior was, Our Lord Jesus Christ. Josh was baptized in Boise, ID.
Josh grew up loving sports, football and baseball especially, which he played from a very young age. Josh excelled in his writing abilities, and history in school but always struggled in math. Josh had an accident in June of 2008 which forever changed his life, but this is really the start of how he always persevered with the cards he was dealt. This event was purely an accident, but he got up and moved on even with the constant pain and struggles. This courage of getting up everyday and dealing with it made him the bravest soul his Dad and Mother ever met.

Josh never served in the military because of his injury but he always had a passion to do so.
Josh never married, and he had no children, but always told us it was in his plans.
While Josh was still planning to go ahead, which he never gave up on, the Lord said it was time to come home brave young man, your mission is complete and let me relieve of your pain. He was too young to go but if you look at his life, he lived at least three life times of adventures that anyone would be proud of in their longer life times.

The Adventure Begins Anew
His adventure started after coming out of a 3-week coma and major brain surgery and being told things he would not be able to do again. He was left deaf in his right ear. The story behind all of this is that Josh would suffer hand tremors, pain, stamina issues and major headaches for the rest of his days.
He desired and started to prove people wrong on his path forward. Josh was told at this time in his early life he could not play football anymore after his injury and he turned that around to go to the Colorado State Championships twice, medalling both times in the discus throw. Imagine a young man having to do spins to throw a discus and excelling at it.

Josh was told that he should not expect to excel at school from that point, he graduated high school with honors and received a sports and academic scholarship to go to college.
Josh was told that he should watch altitudes due to the pressure on his head and he became an avid snow skier before and after his accident.
While Josh struggled with attendance at the college level, he turned his attention to other things that would become a passion. Josh started in the construction industry as a surveyor, working out in the hot Texas sun every day, which he was told not to do, and yet developing a passion that lived within till he passed. He then went to work as a proposal helper, his writing ability was beyond his years and was noticed. From working on construction estimates and proposals, he went back to building things as a field engineer working on highway bridges and roads.

Josh was told that he would have limited math abilities, but he proved them wrong always working with numbers and being able to analyze and forecast. Josh walked up to his Mom one morning after ordering a trigonometry book, and said “How did I struggle with this in school and now I see it?”. He saw geometrics in a way that others did not see, so everyone had to take a step back and listen. Several of his co-workers always stated Josh was more mature, along with a strong ethical background for his young age. His development was at a rapid pace.

Josh was a very loyal employee and loved all the places that he worked and developed a special relationship at each place as he moved forward. Josh showed he could shoot for the stars even though he was told not to look at the stars.
Josh bought a house at the age of 24, and that was a major goal for him for to look forward in an independent life.
Josh was an avid video gamer, he said it relaxed him. He played all sorts of other games from board to fantasy football because he loved using his mind and always up for a challenge.
Josh was an reader beyond compare, from all subjects of books to scouring the news, especially about dogs.
Josh’s love of dogs was unsurpassed, he would not watch movies when dogs were hurt, he would walk out of the theater if this happened. He supported both Service Dogs for Veterans and Samoyed Rescues. Samoyeds were Josh’s breed of choice and was never without one. He is survived by his service dog, King, who just wanders around in these days being nostalgic. King now knows his mission is to take care of the parents and assure they are okay. Josh would say “Good Job King, you were my best friend and watcher, it is time for a new mission”.
The most amazing part is that if you met Josh you would never know he had a major injury and suffered in pain every day. He was never a complainer and he took all of this in stride. He was still planning ahead to the day he passed.

His Real Mission
While Josh had an adventurous life, his real passion was to make sure that everyone he was around had a chance to be heard. Josh was always looking out for the underdog. His Kindergarten teacher always said that Josh would see the youngest and smallest being picked on and Josh would befriend them and make sure no one touched him. This empathy towards people would always be his guiding light. Even at his age, Josh was a mentor. If someone did not know what to do, he would softly jump in and educate this person on the right direction. If someone has a problem, Josh would listen and never judge.
This gift is from no place except from God, his mission was in his own way to touch people through his heart. The Lord has always given the direction to touch “all” people no matter their background. Josh did this in his own unique way. He never turned away from anyone, never complained about his own pain but looked to soften others. Sacrificing quantity of life for a quality life. He never stopped dreaming and planning his next steps no matter the circumstance. The outside person saw Josh as one of a kind ethical young man, who would give the shirt off his back.
When one looks back, we are proud of the people he had a chance to “touch” from around the world. What other person can say that in his short life who could touch people in 9 states and one foreign country with an injury that caused him pain everyday with a smile and understanding beyond his years.
The Lord knew that he had done his mission and that his body was racked with pain, said it was time to come home. GOOD JOB JOSH!

Josh would say “For those I left behind, move forward, I lived my life without remorse and the way I wanted to. I love you all.”