A trip that should have been joyful

Steve Junker, a pastor from Elbow Lake, Minnesota, boarded the Sun Princess in Italy to celebrate his son's wedding.

Found face down in the pool

On August 16 he fell, and was later found unresponsive in a ship pool. His family says he suffered a severe spinal cord injury and nearly drowned.

Off the ship, into intensive care

The ship's medical team treated him before he was taken ashore. An Italian Coast Guard boat carried him to a hospital in Naples, straight to the ICU.

“The guest was attended to by the ship's medical team and subsequently transferred ashore for further care”

Surgery worked, the injury stayed

Surgeons operated on his spine the next day. The family called the procedure successful, but the spinal cord damage was still severe.

Getting him home was its own fight

The family had to navigate care in another country and pay for medical transport back to the US. He reached the Mayo Clinic in Rochester on August 23.

“We are working through the medical, logistical and financial challenges of arranging appropriate medical transport”

He died on September 4

Junker passed away surrounded by loved ones. A former pharmacist who went into ministry, he left a wife, five children and a grandchild, and a church that called him deeply loved.

“Pastor Steve was a wonderful person, loved by many”