Jonathan Andrew Rink

Jonathan A. Rink, 24, resident of Davidson, North Carolina, passed after a C5 injury while snowboarding. He passed at J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown WV surrounded by family and friends knowing he was loved.  Born March 13, 2001, in Clarkston Michigan, he was the son of David and Kathy (Kubicki) Rink, and the brother of Sydney and Connor Rink.  

Jonathan graduated from Hough High School, class of 2019.  Throughout grade school he progressed through Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Venture Scouts and achieved the highest rank of Eagle Scout. Jonathan then attended Appalachian State University where he received an undergraduate degree in Computer Science, class of 2023.  He was a member of Phi Kappa Tau fraternity. He went on to get a master’s degree in computer science and immediately became an instructor at Appalachian State.  He joined the Navy in September of 2025 as an officer and was scheduled to become an instructor at the Nuclear Power School in Charleston, South Carolina later in 2026. 

He was helpful: He loved helping others and it started when he was young by helping the little girl next door, to helping his grandmother, to helping rebuild after Hurricane Helene. Jonathan never passed on an opportunity to help, stranger or friend.

He was adventurous: He loved hiking and camping in the Appalachian Mountains or in the outer banks at the beach.  He even did a 110-mile hike at Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico while in high school.  

He was creative: He was creative and loved to tinker. It started with Lego and k'nex and before we knew it was cars and computers. Working on them, driving them, Off-roading, and he even built his own car while in college.

He was a lifetime teacher and student: Jonathan loved to share his knowledge to help others. He showed that anyone can learn anything. He believed that if you're bad at something at first, that just means there's even more room to grow.

He was inspiring: He showed us the power of hard work. He never took the easy route; an obstacle was just another opportunity to learn. When Hurricane Helene hit, he backpacked across town to check on his brother because cellular and Wi-Fi were down. 

A service will be held at noon on Thursday, March 12, 2026, at Davidson United Methodist Church, 233 S Main St, Davidson, NC 28036.  The family invites family and friends to join them for a luncheon following the service at 2pm at Midwood Smokehouse in Birkdale, 16710 Birkdale Commons Pkwy, Huntersville, NC 28078.

To send any flowers to the family, please contact a local florist in Davidson, NC as we are located in Pittsburgh, PA and cannot deliver that far. Thank you 

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