Service members attend funeral of military hopeful

Service members in uniform attended the memorial service of hopeful soldier Joshua Johnson, 22, of Cape Girardeau on Saturday at Ford and Sons Mount Auburn Funeral Home in Cape Girardeau.

Johnson died Oct. 22 because of complications associated with a seizure.

He was a 2016 graduate of Joplin (Missouri) High School, where he was active in ROTC. Johnson was a member of the Joplin High School weightlifting team, where he was a power lifter. He attended Drury University.

Johnson’s lifelong dream was to serve his country, as either a member of the armed forces or as a member of the police force. But because of the onset of seizures and later multiple sclerosis, his longtime plans were halted, Johnson’s aunt Julie Conn said.

“I thought, wouldn’t it be so wonderful if there was a soldier [here],” Conn said of correspondence between her and high school classmate and retired U.S. Navy Capt. David Cantrell.

“Everyone always asks what they can do. I said, ‘Here’s my ask: Do you know one soldier who could come in uniform to Josh’s memorial?’ And [Cantrell] just took it from there.”

Before the service, Conn said Cantrell presented Johnson’s family with a United States Navy coin.

“He said, ‘I really want to give him this; I will meet him on the other side,’” Conn said.

Joshua Johnson’s aunt Julie Conn holds a U.S. Navy coin presented to Johnson’s family by retired Navy Capt. David Cantrell on Saturday at Ford and Sons Mount Auburn Funeral Home in Cape Girardeau.Joshua Hartwig ~ jhartwig@semissourian.com