Joshua Allen Yaeger

Joshua Allen Yaeger

Joshua Allen Yaeger, 48, passed away on April 21, 2026, in Columbus, Ohio. Born on April 22, 1977, in Cleveland, Ohio, to the late Dorothy L Arp, Josh brought his own delightfully stubborn and entirely unique spirit to the world for nearly forty-nine years. Though born in Ohio, he mostly grew up in Florida and spent a formative chapter of his early twenties out west in Arizona before eventually settling back in the Midwest.

After graduating from high school, Josh earned an associate’s degree and built a successful career in IT. His aptitude for understanding systems suited the tech world perfectly, and he was a lifelong tinkerer who spent his entire life building his own computer systems from the ground up for himself and anyone else he could help. He always maintained a deep appreciation for the retro computers of his youth as well, curating and maintaining a collection of vintage IBM, Apple, and Commodore systems.

A proud curmudgeon and an unapologetic loner, Josh was most at peace in his own sanctuary. He was fiercely committed to his own specific brand of 90s style, a look defined by backward caps, flannels, Converse sneakers, and a legendary, lifelong distaste for pants, even in the dead of an Ohio winter. He liked what he liked, and he was perfectly content staying in his comfort zone, though his family loved him enough to drag him out of it to spend time together.

Josh’s tastes were deeply authentic and rooted in a highly practical philosophy: simpler is better. Whether it was the basic, bare bones vehicles he favored or his straightforward approach to life, he valued reliability and function over flash. He was a dedicated fan of classic sci-fi and high fantasy, spending his downtime immersed in the works of J.R.R. Tolkien and Robert A. Heinlein, or watching Star Trek: The Next Generation and The X-Files on repeat, often just running in the background.

Music was a profound outlet for him. He had a deep appreciation for the heavy, fuzz-laden sounds of deep-cut grunge, desert rock, and stoner rock. When he wasn't listening to music, he was playing it, spending countless hours playing and maintaining his collection of guitars.

Family remained a constant in Josh’s life, even if he sometimes grumbled about leaving the house. He is preceded in death by his mother, Dorothy Arp; his uncle, James Hall; and his grandparents, Gaile and Harlan Hall. His memory, quirks and all, will be forever cherished by his surviving siblings: brothers Benjamin Arp and Harrison Arp, and sister Emily Arp. He is also remembered by his sister-in-law, Jenna Arp, and his two nephews, Owen Arp and Gabriel Arp.

Josh will be deeply missed and remembered for exactly who he was: an authentic, uncompromising guy with a highly practical mindset, an unwavering dedication to his own comfort, and a lasting legacy of doing things exactly his own way.