Jonathan Friedrich Silva

Jonathan Friedrich Silva died unexpectedly at home on Thursday, June 4th, 2026, in University Heights, San Diego, at the age of 31 years.

Jon was born in San Diego. In childhood, he attended Grant Elementary School and graduated from High Tech High in 2012. He enjoyed the creativity, independent thinking, and teamwork fostered at High Tech. Dave Streib, husband of Jon’s godmother, Maria (who has passed away), remembers Jon as a creative and enthusiastic intern who worked with him during an internship at KPBS through High Tech High. Jon was always curious, an avid reader, and loved listening to podcasts by various authors. He was interested in a wide range of topics, especially philosophy and psychology. He read everything written by Carl Jung and Friedrich Nietze. He enjoyed the outdoors, and he enjoyed many camping trips with the church camping group to Palomar Mountain, Cuyamaca State Park, Potrero, and Anza Borrego. He also loved going down to Rancho Packard, in Baja Mexico, with his mom, Susanne, and they shared many adventures. Jon and his mom spent many vacations and holidays creating an ocean retreat across the bay from Ensenada, Mexico.

This curiosity and zest for knowledge continued into adulthood, and he loved to read books, watch YouTube, and research topics as wide-ranging as medicine, nutrition, and public speaking. He had an interest in so many topics that he had a hard time narrowing down a major, but at the time of his death, he had a GPA of 4.0 at City College and was poised to complete his major in Philosophy. He thought about physical therapy and the helping professions as he had been inspired by the treatments and interventions his mother had received during her illness. He was always very health-conscious and was interested in his diet and sustainability. After several years as a Vegan, he changed his diet to only grass-fed meats and no seed oils.

Jon was a loving son; he moved back in with his mother about five years ago at the end of COVID when her illness came back. He was a godsend to her. He helped with running the household, transporting to doctors’ appointments, looking after the dogs, and was always a support to Susanne.

Jon was always patient and calm, especially in times of crisis. He was strong, extremely loyal and generous, always bearing gifts when he connected with friends and family. His neighbor and friend, Jed, recalls how Jon was always willing to share his bargain-bottled high-quality wine purchased at Grocery Outlet or his freshly cooked grass-fed steak. Like his mom, he always loved to find a bargain, whether at a thrift or discount store.

Jon was generous and truly cared about his family. He was kind and loving to animals and once rescued a baby opossum and took care of the opossum, “Cyborg,” for 3 years. His friend Jed recalls how they both nurtured that opossum, fed him like a prince on fine opossum food, and he became as fat and round as a football. He was very tame and became a neighborhood fixture. He rescued a tiny Chihuahua named Freddie, and Freddie, now 14 years old, is grieving the loss of his best friend, Jon.

Jon worked with his father at Quicksilver Customs Brokers. As a driver, he picked up international shipments from the freight terminals and delivered them to local customers in the San Diego metropolitan area. He was always an exemplary employee. Many of the clients describe Jon as articulate, professional, thoughtful, and conscientious. He was always a great asset to the Customs Broker business. He was loved and respected by the various individuals he interacted with at work. In the company of his father, he enjoyed some casual surfing sessions at La Jolla Shores and fished around some local offshore spots in San Diego. He learned how to grill meats according to Brazilian gaucho style and was a crowd pleaser at barbecues.

Jon had a small, close-knit circle of friends, and he was a loyal friend. As noted, they describe him as loyal, funny, generous, and always full of ideas and fun projects. He loved to ski and spent several winters skiing at Lake Tahoe and Big Bear. Jon has traveled around the United States, Baja California, México, Australia, and Brazil. He will be missed by his parents and family more than words can express. His untimely passing has left a void in their lives.

He is survived by his mother Susanne Friedrich, his father Alcides F Silva, and stepmother Maria Luisa of San Diego, his paternal grandmother Elma Silva, and cousins Eduardo and Uncle Trajano in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Jon is also survived by his Uncle and godfather, John Friedrich JR of Durham, North Carolina.

Jon will be missed by his closest cousin, Cameron Huntley. The 2 grew up together as next-door neighbors living side by side for 30 years. He is also survived by Cameron’s parents, godmother Jennifer Malloch Huntley, and Dan Huntley. Jon has many other cousins in Northern California and Michigan who have been an important part of his life.