Ian Shumaker Obituary, Death – We are at a loss for words to adequately convey how shocked and heartbroken we are to inform you of Ian Robert Shumaker’s passing. His big and crazy family, his lifelong friends, his classmates and teachers at school—all of these people were tremendously important to him, and he loved and cared for each and every one of them dearly. He loved each and every one of you with an overwhelming passion.
He possesses what must be one of the warmest and most compassionate souls that any of us have ever had the pleasure of meeting. He possessed the experience and knowledge of someone who was several decades his senior. He liked looking back in time, listening to music, playing Minecraft, listening to the Beatles, seeing Star Wars, reading Harry Potter books, seeing Hamilton performed live, and making other people laugh. In addition, he had a passion for music, Star Wars, and history.
However, more than anything else, he took great pride in his position as Crosby’s older brother. He was constantly entertaining him, instructing him, and watching out for his safety all at the same time. He commented numerous times throughout his career that his all-time favorite part was playing Crosby’s older brother. On a frequent and almost daily basis, we expressed to Ian how pleased we were with him and how much we appreciated his efforts.
We inspired him and reaffirmed to him that he would spend his life helping others and accomplishing amazing things through the work that he does. Recently, he had started talking to us about his long-term goal of running for office in the United States and eventually becoming either a Senator or maybe the President of the United States of America.
Everyone who knew Ian was aware of how much he valued the time leading up to and around the holidays.
This is, without a doubt, our most favorite time of the year. During the winter holidays, Buddy the Elf would pay the boys a visit and leave them letters as part of a custom that has been carried on year after year. He couldn’t wait to get started on the holiday decorations for the house and the tree. It looked like he would be there for hours at a time while he watched Christmas movies while drinking a mug of hot cocoa and sitting on the couch.
But if we’re being completely forthright, it probably didn’t matter if it was the month of December or July because he was probably humming Jingle Bells to himself under his breath the whole time. Because of Ian’s joyous spirit during the holiday season and our confidence that he will succeed in his endeavors and be of assistance to others, we have reached the conclusion that he should make a donation of organs and tissues as a token of our appreciation for his positive attitude. Because of our misfortune, we hope that it will be someone else’s turn to witness a Christmas miracle. This thought brings us some measure of solace.