January 07, 2013 at 2:13 PM, updated January 10, 2013 at 4:15 PM
Fenton resident Joshua Polehna died Saturday, Jan. 5 after suffering from flu symptoms. He was a 15-year-old freshman at Lake Fenton High School

FENTON, MI ? A teenager who loved sports, marching band and the outdoors, Fenton resident Joshua Michael Polehna was remembered most by his parents for his giving nature.

Joshua, 15, died Saturday, Jan. 5, at C.S. Mott Children's Hospital in Ann Arbor following complications from the flu.

?He was always caring and polite and always thinking about others,? said Dave Polehna, Josh?s father.


Kelly Polehna, Josh?s mother, said the family loved taking part in Operation Good Cheer, which involved Kelly, Dave, Josh and the family?s 12-year-old twins traveling to the Oakland/Pontiac airport and collecting gifts in one of the facility?s hangars to send out to children across the state of Michigan.

?We?ve always tried to teach our kids it?s important to help others,? she said, with Josh also taking part recently in the U.S. Post Office?s Stamp Out Hunger campaign and sorting items during Toys For Tots during the holiday season. ?He really enjoyed doing stuff like that.?

A freshman at Lake Fenton High School, Kelly and Dave Polehna said Josh liked making people laugh, held a fondness for the military, but he also had several other interests in his life.

?Like any kid, he liked video games. He was in track (a hurdler) and did baseball,? said Dave. ?He liked camping and riding on the motorcycle with me.?

Josh also poured time into the robotics team and the high school?s marching band, with Dave noting ?He was in the percussion section in the marching band. He worked hard and was very proud of that.?

?Every teacher that had him?they said he was a joy to have in class, absolute joy to be around and always made you smile,? Dave said.

His father said Josh hadn?t shown any signs of illness before the holiday break from school, with the first symptoms coming Dec. 30, when he complained of a sore throat.

?Not a big deal, just a sore throat,? Dave Polehna said. ?On Monday, the next day, it was turning into a raspy-type cough, but it was off and on.?

The family went to a show Monday evening, Dec. 31, and played dominoes that evening. Dave Polehna said Josh went to bed a little early, with the group wishing him a Happy New Year.

The Polehnas called their family doctor Tuesday, Jan. 1, when Josh began telling them of feeling feverish that morning, and the doctor advised them to give him some ibuprofen and see what happens.

?He wasn?t feeling any worse,? Kelly Polehna said. ?His fever was gone, so that showed signs of improvement.?

But Dave Polehna knew something wasn?t right when he began to notice there was inconsistency in his breathing Tuesday evening.

?The doctor said go ahead and take him to the hospital,? he said, and Josh was admitted to Genesys Tuesday night. ?At that point and time, this progressed very quickly.?

Josh was transported to Beaumount by 3 a.m. Wednesday morning and then to C.S. Mott Children?s Hospital in Ann Arbor 7 a.m. later that day.

?The poor guy, it was the flu bug,? Dave Polehna said. ?All three hospitals took information and confirmed it late Wednesday or early Thursday. It was kind of a blur. I went 30 hours without sleeping.?

Josh?s flu eventually progressed to pneumonia. ?Your immune system just goes down big time and that made him susceptible to infection in his lungs,? his father said.

?It was just too much for his body to handle,? he said. ?The last thing I could say going (forward) to fellow parents is sometimes when you do everything right, it?s just not good enough.

?We asked the question: what could we have done differently?? he said, with the response from doctors and nurses that, ?Step by step, you did everything you could have done. We would have done the same thing for any of our children in that situation. It?s exactly what anybody would do.?

?It was just the perfect storm,? he said. ?I probably wouldn?t have lasted that long, but I would trade spots with him in a heartbeat.?

Lake Fenton Schools Superintendent Wayne Wright said the district asked local clergy and volunteers to come into the district on Monday for any students who would like counseling.


As for other students in the district, Wright said the school is monitoring its absences in case the district sees more students falling ill.

?We haven?t had a high number of absentee students at this point,? Wright said.

Dave thanked the community and noticed residents rallying around the family, because Josh ?touched so many people?s lives.?

?Whether they are calling or texting, the offers of anything we can do, the support,? he said. ?Everybody feels really bad. No parent should have to bury their kid.?

?He will be very missed,? Dave said.

Joshua Polehna is survived by his parents, David and Kelly Polehna; siblings, Benjamin and Brianna; grandparents, John Polehna, Ray and Rose Konchel; several aunts, uncles and cousins. His grandmother, Elaine Polehna preceded him in death.

Visitation is set to take place from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 9, at the Sharp Funeral Homes Fenton Chapel, 1000 Silver Lake Road., and 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 10, at St. John The Evangelist Catholic Church, 600 N. Adelaide St., in Fenton, followed by an 11 a.m. funeral presided over by the Rev. Fr. David W. Harvey.

Friends may share an online tribute on the obituary page of www.sharpfuneralhomes.com.
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