I remember when Josh was a little boy we used to play Josh’s own special brand of hide and seek. “Uncle Steve, Uncle Steve!..come find me, come find me.”

Yes, Josh, I found you. We all found you. Because like your special game of hide and seek, you made it so easy to find you and to get to know you. With so many obstacles in your way and yet you made it comfortable for all of us. The conversation was rarely about you - - you were always more interested in everyone else.

Josh touched our lives. He was a unique individual – as a boy, as a young man and as an adult. Not because he had muscular dystrophy or because he lived in a wheel chair, but because he made us know that he had his own mission to get on with his life despite the many obstacles. And boy did he get on with his life!
- A normal public school education in Cheltenham instead of special schools;
- An undergraduate college education at Temple;
- A graduate education at Temple with a Master’s thesis.
- Cooking, blogging and writing a book that opened our eyes to the reality of Josh’s day to day life.
- And so much more…

As someone said to me recently: “he lived his life to his full potential and not many people can say that”.


But that’s not what I’ll miss about Josh. I think some of Josh’s favorite moments were when he felt independent - - when you could get him alone. And just talk. Josh could talk about anything. He was spirited and he was interesting. He had a point of view and he was fun.

To Linda and Michael, we all know, Josh had an unbelievable support system and you were at the center of it. You helped make Josh the incredible person he became. Linda, my big sister, you amazed me with your selfless performance day in and day out. You were Super Mom, not just to Josh, but to Amy and Stephie as well. And you were much more than a mother to Josh - - you were his nurse, his friend, his cheerleader and his constant companion and you never made it seem hard because it was a labor of love.

We all learned from Josh. I know I did. He had passion for what he was doing (and not just for the Phillies and Eagles). He had courage. But most of all, he gave us so much. Josh, for me, it was most definitely “Worth the Ride”.

-- Steve Goldstein (Josh's uncle)