My son, Liam, was good friends with Joshua. I would find them running around in Mrs. Neal's room in their socks after school and laughing.  Mrs. Neal says they were both really good kids.  The school was a very tight-knit place at the time, and we have fond memories of the families who attended the school, especially of Josh's family.

Whenever anybody said "nobody knows..." Josh would automatically finish their sentence by singing the line from Spaceballs.
"...the trouble I've seeeeen! Nobody knows... but Jesus."
😂 I'll always think of him whenever I catch the phrase or see the movie.

In grade school, there were GreatSkate nights for booster club. Our neighbors oftentimes went so they would always invite Josh and I to tag along.
We had been invited and we knew mom would only say yes if we cleaned up. So I pep talked Josh and got to cleaning so we could party hardy like the 3rd and 5th graders that we were. Except Josh ended up playing with the stuff we were picking up instead of putting it away! 😜 I yell at him to clean up and he wacks me with the Lord of the Rings Frodo Sword he had in-hand and awakens the she-hulk in me 💪👏👊
I thought maybe he was shirtless when this happened but... no, no... he had a shirt on 🤦🙇 but I in turn smacked Josh on the back. Like smacking a ripe watermelon 🍉 and I had apparently slapped him so hard my momma heard it from across the house inside the garage (note the fire proof aka sound proof door). She came inside and yelled "WHAT WAS THAT?!" I immediately start telling Josh I'm sorry a million times. At this point my almighty smack had brought him to his knees. Almost floor level. And I guess he took this as the opportunity to counterattack with a toe bite. I remember screaming and stepping back like 👀👀 "YOU REALLY JUST BIT MY TOE?!"
When we checked Josh's back there was a very distinct and defined pink Nora-hand print. Nice and risen.

Yeah, we didn't get to go to GreatSkate that night Lol I'm sorry bro. I love you lmao

One of favorite memories of Josh was when he was being attacked by Elie and Milla. They grabbed onto him while standing and he struggled to maintain his balance and fell to the ground and squished Milla. Milla started crying while everyone else busted out laughing! One of the funniest moments in my life! I’m gonna miss you Josh. You really were the best person that a friend can ever ask for. Love you always!

My nana had bought us this weasel ball and Josh and I used to be obsessed with it. 
We had eventually ripped the little weasel off the ball and we would carry it everywhere with us. We would take turns watching it. We always thought it looked like Scrat from Ice Age haha
One of the trips back to/from Cali, Josh & I brought the weasel toy with us. My nana drove us in the van, which had the A.C. controls available in the backseat. We shoved the weasel in the A.C. vent and turned the air on high & it popped the weasel's head out, just the head lol so it's just hanging from the vent and the hair is blowing foward, making it wiggle. We were laughing so hard 😂❤

I just want to share how amazing Josh was to my daughter Elie, she enjoyed his company and loved playing with him, even though she would shake him and ask him for money he “owed” her, lol. Josh was a good sport getting shaken by a small child but I know he like playing with her and that soon became their inside joke ever time she saw him, the first thing that came out of her mouth was “where’s my money!”. I was glad to see there was someone that can keep up with her, even if it meant she would get a ball to the face sometimes or chased around, lol, but it was great to see them together and when Bianca would help babysit her, he would help take care of her and he did a great job, he truly was amazing to her. I know she really misses him but I’m so glad that they got to know each other. Those two were nothing but a ball full of energy when they played around and it was a joy to see them together. Thank you for those memories Josh! 

There's a few memories I have of Josh. I remember when both Bianca and Josh went to their first prom and how excited they both looked to go with each other. I also remember when he wasn't sure he wanted to take another puppy home with him until he came over and saw the puppies, then he had to have one. There was also the time he came over to ask my parents for permission to marry Bianca all while I was the translator for my mom and him. But my favorite one is a simple one; he had this shirt that had the guy from the game fallout with his arms up and Josh would pinch his shirt and it'll look like he would hold up the guy then he would say "look I'm holding him lol"
No matter the memories they where always good ones regardless how big or small they were. 

I didn't know Josh a much as my other siblings, but I first met him when he went to our family vacation with Bianca. He really must of loved Bianca a lot to accompany this crazy bunch and spend a week with us. I wish I could have a spent more time with him and gotten to know him better. He will always be part of our family and will always be another brother to us. Safe passage on your travels, until our final journey to the ground. May we meet again Josh.

Josh was very comfortable farting around me, and I used to tell him he had a mini trumpet down there or something because without fail, each fart was always this short and trumpet-y toot. 
Seemingly unrelated, my family and I were talking about his love for llamas the other day. I mention how neither him nor I ever knew what sound a llama makes. So for fun, Rosie googled it and I would encourage anyone else to do the same. As soon as she played the sound, I stood up and shouted "OMG THAT'S HOW JOSH USED TO FART!" If only he knew haha In honor I picked a llama picture that personally reminds me of Josh. 

Josh used to always do the line from Galaxy Quest by Mathesar when he says "mmmmm we need your help".
He did it perfect too 😆

(Continuing from post below)
For some reason Josh started talking about bootcamp. How some of the men who leave boot end up with a condition similar to narcolepsy. They would fall asleep at the drop of a pin and couldn't be woken until the episode passed. 
For some reason we talked about his old turtle Sparks. How when he went and got Sparks, it was between getting him or another hamster. He picked the turtle and laughs to himself saying turtles were meant to live over 80 years old. He didn't understand why mom would allow him to get a turtle that would out live him. I joked saying "apparently not" because the turtle died young (maybe 4 or 5 years after getting him?)
And near the end of our drive home we pass this biker. Josh starts talking about how he wanted to fix his bike but that the inner tube on one of his wheels was leaking. He needed a new inner tube but the size of his bike tire was odd, so replacing it was more expensive than he was willing to put into the bike at the moment. 
The last memory I ever shared with Josh, I was making the last turn into our neighborhood before pulling up to the house. I described the time I broke my cousin Steven's shotgun barrel. Nobody knew up until then that it was infact me and not his sister Emily who broke the gun. We ended up talking about the entire family after that. I feel it's important you know all your names left his mouth and he was thinking of everyone the days before. He loved you all!
Josh was tired. He wasn't meant to live the long life that most of us are given. And there was nothing we could have done to get Josh to stay. He had plans and goals he had no intention of putting off and was working himself so hard to make them all come true. I will always admire him for his drive. And always miss him.

I picked Josh up from his work the Wednesday morning before his accident.
I hadn't been with him alone outside the house in a very long time. 
I was very upset just before he called. I had been having a hard week right before everything. Just a lot more emotionally upset and disturbed than ever before, and for no APPARENT reason.
But I picked up the call and he was needing a ride home. He wanted to know if our mom was here but I told him Benji & I would go get him.
As I'm pulling up to the work building, it's sort of in this roundabout plaza. I anticipated the turn 2 or 3 times before I actually found where he was, so pulling up I probably looked like a maniac with a bee in her car. We joke about it when he gets in the car and he starts to tell me how to get home. It was so weird leaving there. I was completely turned around and confused, no sense of direction. 
I remember telling him, from the angle and direction we came from it felt like what we were looking at should have been the sun setting, not rising. The sky and position of the sun made it feel like for a brief moment it was 4pm instead of 7am. And it was really beautiful. I wish I could describe the scene better because it truly did not feel like we were here on earth, it was so pretty.
We end up on Glendale heading east back home. I take... 83rd? Or 73rd up to Northern so we're passing the crop fields. I remember seeing a tractor passing through the fields, pulling up all the dirt. 
As random as these things are, it's only in this memory that I can find comfort since his passing. The things we talked about tell me that this was not a random accident. These things were lined up and destined for him.
Take from this conversation what you'd like but I believe I was being told what was to happen without realizing it. 
Know there is a reason for everything or else I wouldn't have these things to hold onto.

Part 2
For some reason Josh started talking about bootcamp. How some of the men who leave boot end up with a condition similar to narcolepsy. They would fall asleep at the drop of a pin and couldn't be woken until the episode passed. 
For some reason we talked about his old turtle Sparks. How when he went and got Sparks, it was between getting him or another hamster. He picked the turtle and laughs to himself saying turtles were meant to live over 80 years old. He didn't understand why mom would allow him to get a turtle that would out live him. I joked saying "apparently not" because the turtle died young (maybe 4 or 5 years after getting him?)
And near the end of our drive home we pass this biker. Josh starts talking about how he wanted to fix his bike but that the inner tube on one of his wheels was leaking. He needed a new inner tube but the size of his bike tire was odd, so replacing it was more expensive than he was willing to put into the bike at the moment. 
The last memory I ever shared with Josh, I was making the last turn into our neighborhood before pulling up to the house. I described the time I broke my cousin Steven's shotgun barrel. Nobody knew up until then that it was infact me and not his sister Emily who broke the gun. We ended up talking about the entire family after that. I feel it's important you know all your names left his mouth and he was thinking of everyone the days before. He loved you all!
Josh was tired. He wasn't meant to live the long life that most of us are given. And there was nothing we could have done to get Josh to stay. He had plans and goals he had no intentions of putting off and was working himself so hard to make them all come true. 
I love and miss you.

I went over to Rosie's with Josh, it was sometime right before or right after having Ellie. Josh was sitting with Isaac at Peggy's kitchen table, reading with him and I think helping him with homework.
At the time Isaac had a runny nose so he was snorting boogers every 35 seconds Lol. Isaac would scrunch one side of his face up and flare one nostril as he sucked those boogies up. It sounded like when someone drags a kitchen table chair, and it kinda bumps and drags on the floor 😂 everytime he did it, it'd be in the middle of him talking and he would carry on with whatever he was saying like he didn't just start a mini chainsaw. Josh would look over at me with this face and crack up laughing. It was hilarious. I have a collage of videos of Isaac snorting like a little piggy a whole bunch that evening. It's pretty funny lol 
I love you brother & miss you.

I remember going to the Justice of the Peace to watch Josh & Bianca be officially married by the courts. 
We were waiting outside the courtroom, like every other family there. I was actually in labor at the time but didn't realize it. Just thought I had bad cramps or upset stomach. It felt like an eternity before they finally got to us.
I wanna say the judge who married them also married Lance & Rosie. He was awesome.
I remember hanging back with Lucy and trying to keep eyes on her while the short ceremony took place.
I cried when he married them. It swelled my heart to know Josh found someone who loved him. I was so excited for him & honestly a little jealous haha Always envied my little brother.
The next day I had Benjamin. It wouldn't be until a few days later that I actually got to bring Benji home but that first evening back, Josh and Bianca came into my room to see him. We took some pictures and made Josh hold Benji. 
So sorry Josh! I set his arms up all retarded in preparation for holding my son and it was so dang awkward. Lol Bianca came in and adjusted his arms and Josh finally held him for a minute. It was funny but then very sweet and I wish I could go back to that moment. Take more pictures.

I once messaged Josh on Facebook messenger and asked if he was at work. He said yes. And I asked if he was working his Marine job and he said yes. We talked a bit and asked for him to come over some time to play. He said he would try to.

One time we were playing Scrabble and I was bugging him a lot. Lol. I think I won, but I had fun playing with him.

Lucy and I were playing together and Josh came out of his room in his Marine clothes. I asked if he was on his way to work and if it was hard. He said yeah he is on his way and it can be very hard work sometimes. 

One time Mom and I went over to visit Nora, and Josh came home and was hanging out with us. He let me play Halo with him on his X-box. During the game, we played capture the flag and faced these bad guys. I don't remember who won.

I loved him. He was one of my favorite people. I wish he was here and I could make more memories with him. I hope Josh is having a good time in heaven with his dog, Dogmeat. I love you, Josh❤️

Joshua was always fun to be around. Whenever I'd go over to visit when I was pregnant with Elena, my fat preggo butt would be sitting on Nora's bed and Josh would walk in and sit with us. We'd talk about some really random things, and a lot of memories from when we were younger. I really wish I could remember what we talked about. But either way, I remember us laughing a lot, and being dumb. He had the best smile and his laugh was infectious. I never really got more of those times with him after Elena was born.
He came over a few times to visit, which I'm very grateful for. He'd sit with Isaac and read with him or play a game on the tablet with him. Josh held Elena for the first time when she was about a week old. He kept mentioning how small she was, but how heavy she would get too.  Josh would call her my little "German baby" because of her blonde hair and blue eyes 😂 
He loved my kids and always played with them when they were together. The last time we went over to the house to visit, he played ping-pong with Isaac in the garage and Isaac really enjoyed spending time with him. Elena never got to know Joshua as well as her brother did, but she knows his face and always points him out in pictures whenever she sees him.
We love and miss you, Joshua. So very much ❤️

This was one of my favorite memories that I had with Josh and it was the day he ask me to marry him. As we were getting up to go I was already walking away when he called for me. As I turned around he was pointing at the left overs in a bag. He kept pointing at it and telling me to get it. So I went back to grab the bag calling Josh a butt for making me get the food. But right when I reached for the bag he grabbed my hand and said some amazing things that I'm not going to say and went on one knee and ask me to marry him. It was the most amazing feeling ever and I was also excited to be marrying my best friend who also was my soul mate. Even though we didn't have enough time as I would of liked with each other but with the time I did have with him was the best and I wouldn't trade it for the world. I love you so so so much Joshua Garcia and you will always be in my heart 💖 RIP Love 💖

The first time I met Josh I was walking out of art club meeting. We only have been messaging for a couple of days so we weren't really close. Anyways when I walked out he was standing near talking to someone. I saw him but tried not to be weird about it and smiled when he saw me. He said “Hey” I did the same and began talking to him for the first time. The person he was talking to then excuse themselves and it was just me and Josh. We talk for a bit and then I told him I had to go to the front of the school because I was getting picked up. So he went with me and walked me to the front. Not to lie right when we started talking to him I felt very comfortable around him and I acted like myself. I wasn't shy like I usually am or making things awkward instead I just felt comfortable talking to him. Anyways while we were in the front waiting I did most of the talking. I remember him telling me years later that he thought I was crazy because I said that “ I’m always hitting people with tennis balls”. I have no clue why I told him that but I did. Then my ride came and we had an awkward hug. I went in for a hug and he tried waving or tried shaking my hand. We went back and forth for a bit until I gave him a hug. But what I really remember that day was his smile while I was talking. He looked extremely happy and when I hugged him he seemed even more happier. I love you Josh and I really miss you my Love! 

Josh and I used to play this game where we would each pick an animal, usually writing the name on a whiteboard and then showing each other so as not to influence the combination of animal; we wanted it to be as random as one could think. Once we had two animals picked we would then draw what we envisioned being a combination of the two. We always drew in private and then revealed our results to each other once we were both done. It was interesting the similarities we found in our creations and also hilarious seeing how differently we can also think from one another. It's a very fun game that others should try, the uglier the sketch the better we say! Lol I'm hoping to get my family in on the game. Here are some of mine & Joshua's masterpieces.

Adrian, Josh & I went to West Gate to go Pokemon hunting & Josh found a hitmonchan. We chased that thing from the WestGate sign on Glendale, down the side of Cabelas and into the empty crop field next to Cabelas. Keep in mind it's like 8 or 9pm so we can't see anything. We're walking through this field, breaking our ankles on all the dips and holes, and trying to avoid stepping on the hard brush that was there. This pokemon keeps popping up an disappearing, so everytime it appears Josh starts to run. I got a little left behind, but we found ourselves wandering back to the street, Glendale. We gave up on trying to catch it and eventually made it back to my car. As we're driving home I take Glendale and pass where we were and Josh starts freaking out because it popped up on his pokedex and I nearly slammed on my breaks so he could fight it 😂 but it disappeared again. What a tease!

Josh and I were starting a new daycare together.
The last daycare we went to had all the children in one main room, so I never worried about Josh or ever thought I would have to. He was always where I could see him and vice versa.
That is until we started this new daycare that had separate rooms for the different age groups. I guess I was old enough to be in the "big kids" room, so I was placed there without question. Once I realized Josh wasn't coming with me I started crying. 
The teacher in the toddler room where Josh was at had come over to the big kids room and brought me back with her because aparently Josh had been crying for me too. As soon as I saw Josh I went up to him and hugged him. I took his hand & we kinda stopped crying, found a nice place to sit away from everyone and sat down with each other.
All we did was watch the other kids (they were a little too wild for our taste). 
I remember this toddler brought a chair over to sit by us, but like placed his chair directly in front of us. This kid then jumps up on the chair and it tips back and clipps Josh on the head (he was kinda crouched/ crawling by when this happened) Josh started crying so
 I grab the chair and yeeted that child. Only we make each other cry. Lol

Mom used to take Chris and Rosie to the highschool before Josh and I needed to go to the elementary school, so for a little while there it was up to Josh and I to get ourselves to school on time.
Not a hard task considering we lived right down the street from Glendale American.
However one morning we got pretty sucked into Jimmy Neutron.
It wasn't until we finally finished the episode and we were talking about it that we realized... "Wait, we never get to see the end of an episode?"
We instantly looked at each other 😶
& I grabbed my backpack and yelled "WE'RE LATE!" 
He's scrambling for his stuff and I'm already out the door lol
You can hear the last morning bell ringing as we're running down the street, and Josh is telling me to slow down (running with a backpack nearly as big as you isn't as easy as one might think). 
I'm just looking back while running, screaming "HURRY UP!!!"
I can't remember now if I had my violin with me or not, or if Josh had his viola with him or not 😂 I can picture either one of us trying to run with the dang thing.
Regardless, just two dorky and awkward kids hustlling their way to school.
My classroom was near the entrance to the school where we entered so I made it to class in time. However Josh was not in the portables yet so he had to run to the middle of the campus to get into his building lol for the rest of the day I genuinely didn't know if he had to go to the front office or not, whether he got to class in time but he made it!
He did talk about getting back at me for leaving him behind that morning but we never ran late again 🤷‍♀️ 

Josh was with me when I shaved the side of my head during my "Britney Spears" phase lol
He stood with me for about... an hour as I continuously and repeatedly separated my hair several different ways. God Bless that kid.
I eventually tie off a good chunk, holding it like a rope with the scissors ready ✂️ Josh stood beside me with his hands to his face, finger tips covering his mouth and eyes bulged🙊 We're both breathing heavy & I start to cut. 
For some reason I start to scream? And Josh starts screaming with me too as I'm hacking away
The chunk comes off and what remains is a small palmtree of fuzz sticking out the side of my head.
I remove the hair tie which made an umbrella effect Lol
I try to cut it back evenly with the scissors but no real progress is being made. The scissors are going back and forth between us. At some point Josh and I look at each other kind of like 🤐😬 
And he decides to bring out his clippers 🤦‍♀️ IF I HAD KNOWN!
But at this point my hair was too short & fine, the clipper blades weren't cutting it all.
It looked like Sandy Cheeks when Spongebob and Patrick were trapped in her dome during winter, and they were ripping off her fur with masking tape.
Yeah.
A patchy hot mess lol He eventually went with me to Wootens Barber shop to get it cleaned up. I'm surprised they didn't laugh at me Haha while I was there... 😂 He was my biggest supporter 💪✊

From Lucy 
"I remember him coming home in the early mornings with his bright yellow shirt on and heavy work boots.
Sometimes he wore a hat. Sometimes he didn't.
Sometimes he had a little cooler with him. Somet imes he didn't.
He also drank a lot of water.
When Nora would watch me while mommy was at work, sometimes Josh & Bianca or just Josh or just Bianca would come into the kitchen to heat up their food. Or he would bring out his dirty dishes. I would always run over there and say hi
Sometimes I'd hug them
I wish he was back
We love you Josh!"

Josh used to be very fond of playing the guitar. He taught himself how to play a few songs
The one I remember the most & that he was most proud of playing was Handlebars by Flobots. 
I liked hearing him play it on the acoustic. Sometimes he'd take our older brother's electronic guitar.
He also learned to play the piano.
& he sang all the time! He took choir and got together a group of guys he would legit just sing with, in their free time Lol Josh used to record some of their acapella. He was always showing me. "Barbara Ann" was their best work, as he put it ha
There were times him & I would just pass each other, whether it be in the kitchen, on the way to do laundry or in the hallway and I'd just randomly belt out "I'm just a poor boy!" And he'd sing back "I need no sympathy".
I'm going to miss singing with him. And whistling. 
Him and I would whistle together and sometimes we'd both hit the same note, the same key, and it would be in such perfect sync that it created this harmonic ringing and we would BUST out laughing. We would try to whistle again but because we were laughing so hard, we couldn't form our lips the same and we would just be rocking back and forth giggle-grunting like old men, making old-asian-man-like facial expressions. If you can imagine that.

Of all my memories of Josh, one that always stands out is how cantankerous he was as a tiny kid. I’ll never forget him being small enough to climb into the pantry cupboards, eating fruit snacks and other junk. Everyone would be searching for him and starting to panic while he’s giggling and hiding right there, snacking away.

Love and miss you Jujube, you little monkey. 

We used to have a play set in our backyard, and early mornings before school, Josh and I used to swing  before we had to 1.) play with other children and 2.) go to work (we called school work). 
It was like every other morning at the time. We were jumping off the swings and running around.
I think mom had peeked her head out and said it was time to go, so we got back on the swings one more time and he jumped first. 
Perfect landing.
I go to jump and am shortly met with disappointment and pain. The s hook on the swing grabbed onto my hair and ripped out 2 strands too many. I land in the sand, fall to my knees and my hands go to my head and I'm crying and screaming. Josh is trying to comfort me and he goes back to the swing and brings me back the chunk of hair that's still hanging onto the seat. I remember him sticking his hand out, saying "For your bald spot"
I freak and start crying more, feeling my head for this bald spot and he instantly starts laughing and apologizing. He's like "I'm just kidding there's no bald spot. It's ok." all while placing the hair on my head.
He did hug me and tell me I looked good.
He always tried his best to make a situation better. He was pretty damn good at it.

My family and I all talked about how we will NEVER forget how cloudy the day was of Josh's services.
The processional was overwhelmingly moving. 
Everyone was stopped.
Some people were outside of their cars with their hands over their hearts. 
Some were saluting.
For the first time since Joshua passed, it felt like the world had finally stopped turning. Everything had stopped. The way it should have, the way that morning felt when we received the news.
But as we waited outside the church for them to bring him out of the hearse, it was quiet.
A gloomy but illuminated sky. A chilly but silent breeze.
The moment they pulled his casket out, the sun came from out behind the clouds and shined a light that was so bright and intense, like it was God before us. It was difficult to look up or see.
And the sun stayed out the entire time we walked him inside, up until they finally rolled him off the lawn, after the 21 gun salute. It was then that the sun hid away again and I realized it was my brother.
Those were the most beautiful and healing moments of that day.
Thank you Josh for being with us <3

*from memory card*
Elizabeth (Lizzie)
"Growing up with you was one of the biggest blessings. Basically a blood brother.
May you rest in peace and give Joey lots of hugs and have fun with each other.
XOXO"

*from memory card*
Jorge Rosas D.
"When I first joined wrestling, Josh was way above everyone else and he was one of the reasons me and many other teammates never gave up on our matches."

*from memory card*
Sean & Sarah Collins
"I'll always remember how excited & full of joy Josh was on his wedding day.
Everything from how he stole the show when he jumped on the dance floor to the look on his face when we sneaked him a drink.
You will be missed brother."

*from memory card*
Diego Cerereres
"I had so many memories with Josh that it's hard to pick but one of the best and most memorable is how he motivated me and others to not give up. He definitely helped me at times of need, even if he didn't know it."

*from memory card*
(Samantha) Samsung & Cassandra <3
"Jello Pencil prank with you and Cassy.
(Josh) asking Bianca to prom with the tardis sign and tennis balls."

*from memory card*
Melissa  Gonzalez
"I didn't know Josh very well. But I remember the first time I met him.
It was when Andrea and I were at the Spartan Race and met Bianca and Josh because they were also participating.
From there, I saw him at work a number of times when he would visit Bianca and greet her with food and a smile on his face. I'll remember him as always smiling and always loving towards his wife."

*From Memory Card*
Coach Horaski-
I had the pleasure of coaching Josh for 3 years in wrestling.  No matter what I asked Josh to do, the answer was always yes.  Wrestle up a weight?  "Sure Coach!"  Wrestle down a weight?  "Sure Coach!"  Wrestle a state champion?  "Sure Coach!"  Josh always did what was best for others, and that includes joining the military.  I am very proud of the young man Josh became.  We miss you Josh!

*From Memory Card*
Julie Patton-
Joshua was a young man who always got the job done.  In class and on the mat as a wrestler for Glendale High.  He always had a smile on his face and love in his heart.  He is a man who can never be replaced.  God speed & God bless.  Cardinal Pride!

*From Memory Card*
Jason White-
I had the great pleasure of coaching Josh in wrestling at Glendale High School.  He was a hard worker and always had a great attitude.  I am truly sad at how his life was cut short.  He will be missed by many.  He and his family will forever be in my prayers.

*From Memory Card*
Tina Benally-Kordonowy-
Joshua was always a happy person.  Even with the injuries he sustained @ GHS he was a trooper.  Always kind and always helpful to me.  He was the most polite and compassionate person.  I will miss him dearly.

*From Memory Card*
Daniel Fernandez-
Honestly from all the memories I have, my fondest are the little ones.  From texting him about sandals that he allegedly stole to his constant pushing me to get in shape and eat healthier along with all the science talks we had.  I will miss him dearly.

*From Memory Card*
Charisma Palmer-
Josh was part of my whole childhood and I can't just choose one memory that sticks out because they all do.  We love and miss you so much.  I love you Nora.

*From Memory Card*
Marcia Turner -
I only knew him through his beautiful mother. he was a wonderful man with a soul that will forever be with him mom's heart!

*From Memory Card*
Elivd Maya - 
My favorite memory is meeting hem both Bianca & Josh. When I met Josh, I had not idea he would become part of my life. Why? Because just like my best friend Bianca, he became my best friend. He has that amazing smile and that glow of joy coming out of him. The bad days became multicolored days. When being with them, I was no third wheel. I was part of the group and part of their life. josh meant family like in a famous movie - Ohana means family and no one gets left behind". he will forever be in our hearts and in mine.

*From Memory Card*
Patricia Vera - 
Recently in July, we celebrated my daughter Elizabeth's birthday at Bucca Di Beppo. We sat next to Bianca and Joshua. he had a very kind smile and you could see how happy they were being newlyweds. I remember at the end of the dinner they ordered canolis and Joshua asked if we wanted to try one. I was just very happy to see how happy and the love you could see they had for each other.

*From Memory Card*
Dan McCloy -
I'm the girls tennis coach at Glendale. Needless to say, I chase a lot of boys away from the courts. I remember trying to discourage him from being there, but this young man was not to scared off easy. I could tell he was a good influence on Bianca. He encouraged her, he helped her, he cheered & consoled her. I remember being late to an away match because of his prom-posal which had everyone on the bus talking. I was not surprised to hear they got married. I was delighted. We need more young men like him at Glendale!

*from memory card*
Diera - 
One of my best memories with Josh was the long prank our group of friends played on him that lasted years. That all started in high school but even after we all stayed friends. 
Going Salt River Tubing was so much fun and we always talk about how fun Josh made it for us all. He was a great friend and I am grateful to have been part of his wedding, and be his friend.

*from memory card*
Lina Rangel -
Josh was such a happy soul! ❤
Ever since I met him freshman year I never saw him without that smile on his face! The energy and positivity he shared with those around him was like none other! ❤ R.I.P.

*from memory card*
Brianna Palmer - 
When we were kids, Josh and Nora used to have sleepovers at our house. We used to laugh and stay up as late as we could. Those were my favorite days.

*from memory book*
Notah -
Regarding Joshua
Joshua's presentation was always kind, calm, thoughtful, and curious.
Curious about living life and experiencing adventure, - - - he also had a sense of humor - he attending a reception held @ our home wearing a T-shirt (it had a tuxedo print on it) 🙂

*from memory card*
Gio Vazquez - 
When Josh, Marco, Junuor and I took last minute pictures at my house for the yearbook. The pictures were due the following day so we literally grabbed any last objects and took pictures with them, including a boat.

*from memory card*
Marco M. - 
The time Josh, Gio, Jr and I created a group chat on kik. Every single day we would send each other memes and make fun of each other. I always looked forward to receiving messages from the chat. Always seemed to make my day...

*from memory card*
Sofia Zavala - 
Dear Leanora & family I'm so sorry for your loss you guys and Josh will always be in my prayers.

I had the privilege of meeting Josh during lunch when he was working in the cafeteria although we didn't really become friends till my senior year, he always a had a bright warm smile and made the atmosphere around him warm and fuzzy. the moment people saw him they automatically lit up with the biggest smile they could possibly have. he was a well respected human and will always be cherished 💙

Joshua was about 4 years old when Nora, Josh, and I decided to play hide and seek.
I was the one seeking, so after searching through the bedrooms, I found Nora pretty fast. 
I looked everywhere I thought Josh would be, including closets, kitchen cabinets, even the fridge (one of his top hiding spots). But I couldn't find him after about 5 minutes (I had a very short attention span and little patience at the time), so I had Nora help me look. 
We started calling out his name, saying "we give up, you can come out now", but no answer.  Nora and I looked everywhere again, the linen cabinet with shelves in the hallway, our mom's closet and bathroom, under beds, on the top bunks under blankets. Still no luck. 🤔
After about another couple minutes, we gave up the search and went to watch TV, figuring he'd come out eventually.
About 20 minutes go by, and still no Joshua. Getting worried, we go search for him again, knowing we'd get in trouble with our mom if we didn't find him.
Walking down the hallway, we hear a noise coming from the linen cabinet. We open it up, but we don't see anything; no movement or sheets displaced on the shelves at my eye level. I then look all the way up and see Josh's foot on the very top shelf, that must have been 1ft from the ceiling. And he's SNORING! This tiny monkey, climbed into the top shelf of the linen cabinet, and fell asleep for the past 30 minutes!  😂
He woke up after Nora and I were dying of laughter, and I helped him down. I can safely say Josh was the champion of hide and seek in our house 🏆🥇😁

Sharing a bedroom with Josh growing up resulted in a lot of fun and games.  This must have been in the early 2000's.  I remember we'd stay up really late, especially on school nights, laughing, talking, playing.  Him on the top bed and me on the bottom.  He liked it when I'd push the mattress from underneath with my legs, bouncing him around.  He had this hysterical laugh he'd make every time.  After a while, and a few yells for us to go to sleep, even I would want to call it a night.  Josh could stay up for hours upon hours though.  I would stick my hand up between the wall and bed and use a finger like a puppet to talk him into going to sleep.  I'd make a voice and everything. He loved it.  He called it Mr. Finger I think.  Occasionally it'd work, I'd tell him a story and he'd go to sleep.  Other times we'd just goof around more, only now I was doing voices.  Eventually we grew out of that but it's still a memory that I would think of sometimes.

Josh must have been in 5th grade when one night we decided to slide down the hallway towards the kitchen in our socks. We just mopped the floors so they were super smooth.
We'd start from the end of the hall and run towards the kitchen, then back. But one time I ran towards the kitchen, I slipped, fell on my side and kept sliding until I hit my butt really hard against the bottom kitchen cabinet. It sounded like I broke the cabinet door, but it was just my pride and the cracking of my hip. Josh stood there with this shocked look on his face, completely stunned. Then he finally said, "Wow. Are you okay? That was sooo......unbelievably dramatic, and not what I expected." 
Yeah me either. Lol. But he helped me up, and grabbed me a bag of frozen vegetables for my hip, and brought me some cookies for my pride. He was as goofy as he was kind. Which made him one of the best people to be around. I wish I had a lot more stories of us hanging out, but my memory is complete garbage. I hope I'll remember more soon. Love you, Josh.

When Josh was 12 or 13, he had a very weird night in his Harry Potter closet-sized room. He was super tired and falling asleep on his stomach on his bed. He heard some kind of whoosh and felt a gust of air, and pressure on his back. He woke up, freaked out and bolted out of his room.
He came banging on my bedroom door. Must have been knocking and pounding on my door for almost 4 or 5 minutes. I was sharing my room with my 1 year old son, so I'm super surprised it didn't wake him up....but it apparently didn't wake me up either because the only thing that finally woke me up is when he turned my doorknob. I freak out and ask who's there, and Josh pops his head in asking if he can sleep in my room for the night. I was too tired to ask why, so I just said yes.
It was the next morning when he told me what happened in his room, and I said he could sleep in my room anytime he wanted to. Lol. Pretty sure he thought his room was haunted.

I used to watch Veggie Tales a lot with Josh
A few favorites were "Hairbrush" with Larry, "The Bunny", "Subaru", "Water Buffalo" and his ALL TIME favorite was "The Cheeseburger" song. Lol 
I don't even know if those are the proper titles, that's how him & I always referenced it.
But he would bust out singing the cheeseburger song, whipping his head back and forth and doing that crazy leg dance he was so good at Lol and the words he would always sing were "I want the cheeseburger, I want the cheeseburger.... wasn't for YOUUUU" and he would point at me all dramatic. I'd make an appalled face.
Again, I don't even know that those were the right words, we were always making things up & improvising haha
He would also sing with me "God is bigger than the boogey man. He's bigger than Godzilla or the monsters on TV" whenever I couldn't sleep at my dad's.

It's hard to pick one favorite memory.
This has to be the funniest. I love you Josh & hope you don't hate me for sharing this lol But if you want to know how excited Josh got for food, then this is the perfect story.
My mom had just gone grocery shopping and it had been a while since she grabbed us our favorites, like corndogs or chicken nuggets. However this time, she bought Hot Pockets.
Josh had checked the freezer and started screaming with joy. Jumping around and running, he goes into the garage and shits himself from excitement. He literally came back through the garage door into the living room with his chonies around one ankle, hopping on one foot and with the other, he's swinging around this loaded pair of undies yelling "omg guys, I shit myself, I shit myself! Don't look at me!" 🤣  We were all laughing so hard. His little buns 😂😂 I think he was in 3rd or 4th grade lmao

Josh and I were convinced we could live in the backyard... well I convinced him lol and insisted we learned to "live off the land"
We were "hunting & gathering" a bunch of twigs for fire... and grass for salad 🤦‍♀️ I didn't want to eat the grass first so I got him to try it and he got sick! I felt horrible. 
He had been in bed for a whole day already and I thought he was dying so I went in the backyard and got a blade of grass, brought it in and sat in front of him. 
I didn't say anything, I just had it out in front of me, but he knew what I was doing. He just looked at me and said "No. Don't do it."
I move the blade of grass closer. I'm about to eat it and Josh grabs my wrist and we are being so dramatic lol he tells me "You don't have to do this. It's ok"
And I was like "ok cool, cuz I really didn't want to eat this grass" lmao 
And that's the third time I made him eat something that later made him sick
The second time was when my mom had gotten this new dog food for Sparky and  since it had "REAL BEEF" in it... I figured... lmao
I think this is how he developed the no-fear and intuition for cooking weird dishes all the time Lol

Josh and I used to sail paper boats down the sidewalk whenever the street would slightly flood from a good rain. We would try to race until we realized the boats caught & sank one another.
I would make us write on the paper boats, in case they sailed away and someone found them! Lol 
These boats only ever made it 4 houses down from us before getting stuck on the curb or sinking, but Josh got his boat all the way down the street before getting caught on the turn of the curb.  Josh always wrote that wheoever got the boat, God loved them dearly.

When Josh was about 4 or 5, I used to take him in our backyard, behind the chimney on the side of our house and show him this little trap door that was on the back of the chimney. I believe it's for the ashes and for cleaning the chimney lol but I had told him this was where we placed letters for Santa. So I would make him write letters and put them in this little trap box door. 
I'd then distract us; start playing with our dog Sparky at the time or play in the sand.  
When he wasn't looking I would go take the letters from the chimney so that when we would check back later, I could tell him that santa came and picked up our letters.
I think there was one time he had put a toy car in there without telling me and he was very confused as to how his car was still there. I tried to say santa won't take toys. He brings them. But it became clear to me I wasn't prepared for upholding this fantasy lol Almost everyday after for about a week or so I was constantly checking that place to make sure he didn't put anything else in there that I couldn't snatch up and claim to be magic.

Joshua and I used to sit in the hallway of our house after closing all the bedroom doors and the bathroom door, and we would both have a hand full of bouncy balls. After counting to three, we'd throw the balls as hard as we could, everywhere. 
Sometimes we try to run through the crazy field of bouncing balls. 
Sometimes we would get hurt lol but a lot of the times we would just laugh our butts off. It was a very sad day for him and I when my mom put up the family pictures in the hallway. No more bouncing balls 🤷‍♀️

One time when Josh and I were younger, I'm thinking I'm somewhere around 5, making him 3... we had stolen a pack of spearmint gum from my mom's desk in her bedroom and we hid underneath the desk in the playroom and proceeded to eat the entire pack of gum. Well... I was like handing him piece after piece until the pack was nearly done. His cheeks just grew bigger and bigger. At one point he cried and spat the gum out because his cheeks cramped lol I felt so bad. But when we talked about it since, we always laughed. He still made a turtle face at me to remind me that he did get sick from this. Lol I love you Josh and miss you!

When Josh and I were in 7th grade and 8th grade, he was absolutely my best friend (and my crush too!) I remember we would always sneak out of the house late at night and walk to walmart or to the park and just chill together and enjoy each others company. I remember one night, he wanted to go to walmart and get an energy drink (as if he didn't have enough energy) and we ended up finding a rope at the store and he put it around his waist and was playing dog and barking loudly and being crazy hyper at like midnight at walmart... just typical crazy make-you-laugh Josh. I miss him very much even though we didn't stay in touch through high school and onwards. He was such a good friend and boyfriend to me when we were so innocent and childish. He will surely be missed and loved forever. 


My best memory of Josh was when he showed me this little box that contained an engagement ring. I remember I walked into my moms house and he happened to be there. He looked at me and he said “Hey Nanda I want to show you something” I remember thinking he better not pull a fast one on me but he had the most biggest smile I’ve ever seen so I figured it had to be something good then he proceeded to pull out a little box and said “what do think?” I couldn’t help but get that same infectious smile. All I remember asking is when are you asking and he gave me this look and said “soon.” I was very happy over joyed that he was taking the next step and would officially become a big part of our family. I love this memory, I’ve never seen him have the most biggest smile on him. Love you Josh I will always remember that smile especially seeing it again the day you two married, thank you for giving me that I will always remember you like that.

This could not have happened to a nicer family. My heart is broken for you all. I am so sorry for your loss. Joshua was a great kid with such a good heart. He will be missed.
Hugs and prayers, Elizabeth Simchak Buchanan

OBITUARY

LCpl Joshua Robert Garcia

February 15, 1997 – November 16, 2018

Chapel of the Chimes Mortuary

Show your support

Add a Memory

Share Obituary

Get Updates

Services