Josh Hendershot

February 27, 1984

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November 28, 2025

Some people lead lives that aren’t easily summed up in neat, sterile paragraphs. They are the kind of people who come into this world with a gravity that pulls others into their orbit, and Josh was one of them. Without him, we are a bit lost in space, forever changed, and holding onto all he meant to us as we find our new paths in the dark.

James Joshua Hendershot was born on February 27, 1984, in Marietta, Ohio. After a sudden illness, he passed away on November 28, 2025, in El Paso, Texas. He was just 41 years old.

He was known to most as Josh, and as Yoshi to those who found him in the places where his light burned the brightest. Josh spent his last days with his sister by his side, gently brushing his hair, annoying him with forehead kisses, and chatting his ears off while reading the many, many messages that poured in from coast to coast, all filled with love, memories, and support.

Though he was born in Ohio, Josh loved Texas more than some might find reasonably sane. He had just made his way to Marathon, Texas, out where the desert sky flies by for miles, and where he was finally back in a place big enough to hold his energy. Joshua had a heart that was too fucking big for the life he was given. He loved hard, stubbornly, and sometimes devastatingly. He was intelligent and quick-witted, capable of being deeply insightful or effortlessly destroying someone without them even knowing. He was kind and gentle, but also a bit of an asshole in a way that makes people laugh when they say it. People loved him for the way he showed up fully and unapologetically himself, and if he loved you, you knew it, and you’ll carry it with you always.

Josh is survived by his sister, Amanda Hearn, who has lost not only her brother but also her closest friend and a bond that was characterized by brutal honesty, wildly inappropriate humor, tenderness, and a love that never flinched. He is also survived by his siblings, John (Trinh) and Nellie Hendershot; his beloved nieces and nephews, Ethan, Lily, and Gwen Hearn, and Tristan Hendershot; as well as aunts and uncles, Jeri (Kirk) Pierson, Rob (Joyce) Long, Becky (Pat) Long, and many cousins.

In addition to the family he was born into, Josh leaves behind the most incredible constellation of chosen family in Alaska, Ohio, Texas, Wyoming, California, Arizona, Virginia, Georgia, Washington, West Virginia, and more places than can be named. Friends who loved him at his brightest and at his darkest, those who shared cramped housing, hour-long phone calls, unhinged holidays, and nights that can’t be fully remembered. They truly saw him, knew him, and they loved him as family.

In the summer of 2024, Josh discovered and connected with his biological father, Tim (Donna) Shimer; siblings Katrina (Jamie) Clevenger, Lacey (Chance) Kaiden, Michael (Cynthia) Morrison, and Nathan (Kindle) Smith; and nieces Isabel, Jaedyn, Arilla, Payeton, and Avery. Building these new relationships took trust and the courage to dive into the unknown with softness and curiosity. The time they shared means everything, but it will never be enough. They are grieving not only the person they were getting to know, but also who they were all still becoming to one another and the future they had begun to envision.

Josh showed us that loving with your whole fucking heart isn’t a weakness and that connection is what saves us, even when we think we don’t deserve it. He was funny as hell, smart as shit, mischievous as fuck, tender in ways he didn’t always allow to be seen, and stubborn in ways he was more than happy to show. He leaves behind an unmistakable impact on all those he loved and who loved him.

Love bravely, take risks, speak truth with love (or don’t), and choose connection even when it scares you.

Forget the flowers! Remember him by enjoying a meal at a local restaurant (tip your waiter!), and please consider making a donation to the Dallas Cowboys.

Joshua, you are so loved, and your presence will be forever missed. Till the end of days, Yosh.