Weeks after suffering a cervical spinal cord injury and nearly drowning during his son’s wedding celebration aboard a cruise ship in Italy, Pastor Steve Junker of Chippewa Lutheran Church in Brandon, Minnesota, has died. He was 58.
Junker’s daughter, Elizabeth Junker, announced his passing last Friday on a GoFundMe campaign that had initially been established to support his recovery from a severe compression of his spinal cord, which he suffered during the fall and near-drowning. “At 6:33 PM today, Steve went to be with Jesus. He was surrounded by his wife, children, parents, and friends. Further diagnostic testing had revealed injuries that were not treatable,” she said in an update Friday.
“We’re grateful to everyone at Mayo Clinic for their excellent care and to everyone who donated to help support Steve and the family. We’re glad we were able to give him the opportunity to receive world-class care and reassured that everything that could possibly be done to help him was done.” Junker was injured on Aug. 16 and hospitalized in Naples before he was transported to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, on Aug.
23, where he was treated until his death, according to Elizabeth Junker. In a statement on Chippewa Lutheran Church’s Facebook page, Jeanine Junker, the pastor’s widow, said she believes he will rise again in faith, like Jesus. “Mourning the loss of a Pastor for our church family is very difficult to understand. Pastor Steve was a wonderful person, loved by many, and had a great impact on many people through his faith.
Nathaniel Junker has said it best when he sang his worship songs as Pastor Steve was welcomed into Heaven, ‘he closed his eyes to this life and opened his eyes to Jesus’ what more does anyone want!” she wrote.