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John Robert Brink of Des Moines, Iowa, died on May 28, 2018, at Israel Family Hospice House in Ames from complications of cirrhosis of the liver. He was 56. A Celebration of Life service will be held at 1:30 p.m., Sunday, June 3, at First Unitarian Church, 1800 Bell Ave., Des Moines. The service will include an informal time for anyone who wishes to share stories and memories about John.

John was the youngest of five children born to Harry and Kathryn (Kitty) Brink, then of Sutherland, Iowa, and later of Cherokee. He attended Westmar College in LeMars, the University of Kansas in Lawrence, and Western Iowa Tech Community College in Sioux City. He worked at various jobs for organizations in the Sioux City and then the Des Moines areas, including Long Lines in Sergeant Bluff, Pine Ridge Farms in Des Moines, and most recently Ventech Solutions in Urbandale.

John never married, but his life was greatly enriched by his hobbies, primarily music, photography, kiting, and movies, and by his relationships with family, friends, and co-workers. He was also a serious armchair philosopher and enjoyed the benefits of social media for discussing politics, science, and religion (especially his devout lack of it) and for following his favorite thinkers and speakers.

John’s cirrhosis was diagnosed in February 2017 when complications of the disease almost killed him. Up until then he had been a high-functioning, closet alcoholic who drank alone and rarely missed a day of work. That crisis kicked him out of the closet, and he became an open book about alcoholism. His greatest wish would be fulfilled if someone got help to stop compulsive drinking because of his story.

John did not qualify for a liver transplant because of a heart problem called pericardial calcification. The cardiac condition was puzzling, because he was so loved for his soft heart. He was also loved for his dry humor, penetrating intellect, and blunt appraisal of “truths” that many people do not take time to examine.

Harry and Kitty and John’s brother Steve did not live to see John’s final challenge. John’s sisters and brother-in-law—Barb Gilliand of Burnsville, MN, Chris and Craig Struve of Spirit Lake, and Marcia Brink of Ames—feel privileged to have been partners in his struggle and to have witnessed the grace and courage with which he died. They are forever grateful to so many of John’s nieces and nephews, cousins, friends, co-workers, health professionals, and others who have participated in his journey, particularly Dr. Jason Kruse at Broadlawns Medical Center, Deana Schuplin of the Everest Institute, the members of John’s Alcoholics Anonymous group for atheists and agnostics, and the caring and gentle staff of Israel Family Hospice House.