Johnson Family: 'Matt is in heaven with Jesus'
PORTAGE, Mich. (NEWSCHANNEL 3) - Late Thursday night the family of Matt Johnson posted to Facebook a thank you to the more than 3,100 supporters who had been praying night and day for the safe return of their son.
After nearly two weeks the family says they no longer believe there is hope for a miracle.
Rescuers, they say, reached the summit of Mount Fuji and there was no sign of the missing Portage man.
Matt Johnson's car was found at the base of the mountain on January 16th.
Johnson, an engineer with Eaton Corporation, was in Japan on business and failed to show up for work.
The family says on Wednesday, January 25th they got a postcard from Matt. It stated that he was having a good time in Japan and was sending the card from the fifth station on his way to the top of Mt. Fuji.
He said, “It is cold and windy, but the sun is shining! :) A beautiful day for a climb! Have a great day! –Matt”
The family says Matt was doing something that he loved and they are comforted knowing they will see him again in heaven someday.
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Here is the statement as it is posted on Facebook:
This is Matt’s Mom & Dad: From our whole family, thank you for your prayers and support during this difficult time. The two mountain climbers yesterday made it to the top of Mt. Fuji, but unfortunately, did not find any signs of Matt. We really felt like finding Matt in/around the shelters high on the mountain was our last hope of finding him alive. These were the only shelters that were not already searched by foot. Due to the 13 days of sub zero temperatures, severe winds and extreme quantities of snow and ice, we feel that there is no longer any hope of a miracle. We know that Matt is in heaven with Jesus and we will now be focused on recovering his body. Our objective from the beginning was to maintain the hope that Matt would be returned to us in full health. Your prayers and the over...whelming support of family, churches, Facebook, co-workers and the community truly demonstrated the love of God and allowed us to keep that hope until all viable options were exhausted.
We received a pleasant surprise yesterday, January 25th, 2012, when a post card from Matt arrived. It had been sent to a friend and stated that he was having a good time in Japan and was sending the card from the 5th station on his way to the top of Mt. Fuji. He said, “It is cold and windy, but the sun is shining! :) A beautiful day for a climb! Have a great day! –Matt”
Matt was doing something that he loved and we are comforted knowing that we will see him again in heaven someday.
