Josh Laughlin

John Joshua Laughlin, beloved son of Janet Trogdon Laughlin and John Charles Hugh Laughlin, lost his life to cancer on June 4, 2024. While he desperately wanted to live, he was not afraid of dying for he believed it would not be the end of his existence. Words fail to capture the complexity of Josh’s voracious appetite to learn and his desire to experience a life beyond the ordinary that included daily meditation and the search for spiritual guidance. His library rivals that of his parents and having books around him gave him comfort to the end. After living in western North Carolina, Mexico, California, and Arizona, Josh returned to Danville and his parents’ home in April 2023.

Josh believed his purpose was to help others and that he could use his areas of expertise and personal experiences to fulfill that purpose. His formal background was in horticulture, having studied at Virginia Western Community College in Roanoke, Virginia, and A-B Tech in Asheville. He was a lead cultivator in the cannabis industry for ten years while in California. Josh referred to himself as a rogue ethno-botanist and was a huge proponent of plant medicines and organic foods. Chemotherapy was indeed an irony. Josh practiced martial arts for 24 years and held a fifth-degree black belt in Ninjutsu. He had trained/taught in Asheville, New York City, and Santa Rosa/Sebastopol, California.

Josh’s passing leaves a huge hole in the lives of his family who loved him so dearly. Surviving are Linda Trogdon Chafin (Tom), Joanne Trogdon Cox (Dwain), Arrington Jackson Laughlin (Nancy), Charlene Laughlin Aldridge (Billy), and his many cousins. Josh was predeceased by his grandparents, Clarence and Leola Trogdon and Charles and Alice Laughlin, and his aunts, Barbara Lou Laughlin Murray (Rod) and Nancy Laughlin Bridges (Eukley). To our dear friends and family, you bless our lives, and you have our immense gratitude for holding us close on this unexpected journey. We will celebrate Josh’s life together in the days ahead.

We extend our appreciation to Josh’s caregivers at Paths, Danville; Blue Ridge Cancer Care, Salem; and the ER team and providers of care on the sixth floor of Sovah Health-Danville. We will be forever grateful to Dr. Sheronda Gunn-Nolan at Sovah for sharing her medical expertise, compassion, and guidance during Josh’s final days.

If you would like to make a donation in Josh's memory, you might consider Danville Pittsylvania Cancer or Averett University's nursing program.