Obituary of Jonathan Moon Stueve Martin

Jonathan Moon Stueve Martin, AKA Jonny Moon, was born Aug. 4, 1984 at Hillcrest Hospital in Tulsa. He was widely beloved in Oklahoma and San Francisco-the city he called his home since 2004.

Jonathan loved deeply in return. As news spread of his death, his family became aware that dozens if not hundreds of people across the country considered Jonny their "best friend."

Jonathan was larger than life, and once you met him, you never forgot him. Very funny, witty and observant, he was a superb mimic, with a wonderful laugh that made everyone else laugh.

At a very young age, Jonathan began asking the weighty, existential questions usually reserved for later in life, especially the question "WHY." Constantly moving, he was an extremely active child and continued to tap, fidget, and jiggle even as an adult. That energy translated to astounding depth and capacity to live his life 100% on his terms.

Authentic and nonjudgmental, Jonathan had the vision, intelligence, charm and charisma of a benign cult leader. He was passionate about politics and had a gift for predicting the effects of worldwide events. His sister recalls that Jonathan called her, warning of the impending threat of COVID-19 months before official statements were made. Recent trends in American politics troubled Jonathan deeply, and he was keenly interested in the upcoming election.

Jonathan loved to argue his point and could convince you to see his point of view from the age of 3. While his understanding was over most folks' heads when it came to discussing pros and cons of money systems, he could persuade you to buy Bitcoin by the end of the conversation.

At The University School, Holland Hall, Riverfield and Booker T. Washington High School (all in Tulsa), Jonathan won the affection of peers and teachers in spite, or perhaps because of his refusal to form himself to convention. He graduated with the class of 2002.

Jonathan treasured the beauty of the natural world and its manifestations in human creativity. He loved animals, especially his cat, Poppy, and delighted in engaging with children. Their free actions, speech, humor and spontaneity brought out the child in him.

A prolific bibliophile, Jonathan devoured literature. He loved history, poetry, philosophy, art, horror, and science fiction (H.P. Lovecraft and Philip K. Dick in particular), and the classics. He and his mother enjoyed long, meandering conversations over frequent phone calls, often discussing the books they were reading together.

Jonathan loved languages, especially Latin, and studied all religions, with particular fondness for Buddhism. From his mid-20s on, he dedicated himself to practicing kung fu with his favorite teacher, Sifu Hannibal.

Jonathan was tremendously artistic: a painter, musician and writer of songs, poetry and stories. He appreciated all art and could spend days in museums, poring over techniques and information about the artists. He loved performing and playing music with his alt-country punk band, Vollmer (named for the visionary writer and thinker Joan Vollmer).

For 17 years, Jonathan shared a rent-controlled apartment with devoted friends in NoPa (North of the Panhandle), steps from the towering eucalyptus and Monterey cypress trees of the park. He loved walking in nature and knew all the secret wilderness spots in San Francisco, with Lands End being perhaps his favorite.

Jonathan and his father enjoyed many hikes in the city and on their travels together. They particularly enjoyed mushroom hunting.

Helping others, especially people living with addiction, was paramount for Jonathan. While walking in the city, he emptied his pockets to share what he had with his neighbors living on the streets, never refusing a chance to be generous and kind.

Jonathan was especially passionate about harm reduction policy. He touched the lives of people worldwide as a volunteer, moderating a forum at bluelight.org and working with Points of Distribution (POD), a harm reduction organization in San Francisco focused on minimizing adverse health outcomes to people with substance use disorders. When Jonathan was doing well himself, this was where his focus lay.

Everyone who knew Jonathan knew very well that he struggled with addiction from his teen years on. Shortly after his 40th birthday, Jonathan reached what could have been a turning point. He decided for the first time that he wanted to seek treatment.

On the precipice of his precious life, Jonathan faced significant barriers to accessing the rehabilitation he needed, and was denied care due to dangerous regulatory red tape. His father was on a plane to San Francisco to provide support when Jonathan succumbed on Aug. 28, 2024.

Jonathan was so much more than his addiction. We are shattered by the loss of our darling son, brother and friend and are immensely grateful for the 40 years and 24 days we had with him.

Jonathan is survived by his parents, Carolyn Stueve Martin (Ted Beaumont) and Dean E. Martin, MD (Andrea); sister, Elizabeth Ann Martin; and grandmother Maryanna (Moon) Martin; as well as a very large, loving extended family.

Jonathan is also survived by his best friend and roommate Faith 'Moon;' roommate Shy; band members Jim 'Moon,' Kurt 'Moon,' and Nick 'Moon'; and beloved friends across the country and world.

He was predeceased by his beloved great-grandmothers, Ethel May (Wigley) Whitfield and Ruth Ellen (May) Moon ; grandfathers James L. Martin and Charles C. Stueve; grandmother Mary Lou (Whitfield) Stueve; uncle Mark Vance; cousins Nickolas Anthony Bruno, Caitlin Abernathy and Lily Martin; and many beloved friends.

Jonathan wrote and submitted several songs for the Bob Dylan Center Songwriter Fellowship contest in 2023, including this one:

THOUSAND ROSES

I would move a mountain, baby, I'd move a mountain for you.

And I would pluck 1000 roses darlin' - because one would never do, not for you.

And every day that you're gone. Every day that I'm on my own.

Vague specters of your memory, they flay me to the bone.

I would sail the ocean, baby. I would sail the ocean blue.

And I would navigate by starlight darling until I found the isle of you.

And when I row my boat ashore and build a house with a roof and a floor,

I hope one day I wake up and see you walking through that door.

Hear me now, baby soft and true.

When I tell you that I love you.

And I'm sorry I had to write another song about the bullshit I said I would do...

A celebration of Jonathan's life will take place in Tulsa on Sunday, Oct. 27, 2024 at WOMPA, 3306 Charles Page Blvd. There will be a short ceremony at 5 p.m., followed by a reception from 6-9 p.m., with works of art by Jonathan on display. Casual dress as he would have wanted.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Jonathan Martin Harm Reduction Education Fund (https://givebutter.com/olFedy) or to the Alisa Ann Ruch Burn Foundation (www.aarbf.org).

Ninde Funeral | Mosaic Memorial Cremation | (918) 742-5556 | ninde.com