Obituary of Arthur E. Cubbon

STOW - The Rev. Arthur E. Cubbon, Jr., 60, died November 8, 2014. Born Nov. 13, 1953 in New Rochelle, NY to Margret (nee Winkler) and Arthur Cubbon, he moved to Kings Park, NY in 1963 and graduated from Kings Park High School, where he played trumpet in the band, marching band, and jazz band.  Arthur also played soccer and golf and was in Math Club.  In high school, he was very active in church including playing his trumpet and teaching sunday school Arthur followed his first calling by attending the United States Coast Guard Academy, graduating in 1975.  The Coast Guard sent him to over 35 countries and stationed him in New York, Miami, Charleston, and Washington, D.C.  During his 20 years of service, he worked in the New York rescue center, commanded the USCGC Farallon, obtained his MBA from New York University, and concluded his career as a management consultant at Coast Guard Headquarters. While serving in the Coast Guard, he continued to pursue his love of sports by playing soccer both in college and as a FIFA player and eventually coaching his children’s sports teams. In 1995 he retired at the rank of Commander to move on to his second calling- to become a Lutheran pastor.  As he was always so fond of saying, he went from saving lives to saving souls.  He received his MDiv from the Lutheran Theological Seminary of Gettysburg in 1999. Arthur served as Pastor/Mission Developer at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Haymarket, VA for 10 years prior to answering the call to serve as pastor of St. Stephen Lutheran Church in Stow in June 2008. Arthur took great joy in sharing his love of Christ and especially enjoyed sharing that love with the youth at his churches.  At St. Stephen, he was known for his children sermons as well as his passion for his Thursday morning ladies bible study group.  In the Metropolitan DC synod, he served on Synod Council, Reference and Counsel, and on the board of directors of camp Mar-Lu Ridge.  In Ohio, he served on the synod stewardship committee and served as a voting member of the Northeastern Ohio synod to the 2011 ELCA Churchwide Assembly in Orlando, FL. Preceded in death by his father Arthur Cubbon and sister Donna Keen, he is survived by his wife of eight years the Rev. Dr. Leah Schafer; children Arthur E. Cubbon, III, Bristow, VA, Kathryn L. Cubbon, Woodbridge, VA, Erin E. Balloue (James), Hayward, CA, Rachel A. Fredrickson, Lansing, MI; mother Margret Cubbon of Stow, OH; brother Robert Cubbon (Mary Ellen) of Kings Park, NY; nieces and nephews Robert Cubbon, Matthew Cubbon, Christopher Cubbon, Tanya Cubbon, Anastasia Keen, Vera Keen, Bethany Burnett (Michael), Alyssa Bodack (Jason); brother-in-law Arthur Keen and many cousins. The Rev. Abraham D. Allende, Bishop - Northeastern Ohio Synod, ELCA will conduct funeral services Tuesday, November 11th at 11:30 AM at St. Stephen Lutheran Church, 3725 Kent Road, Stow 44224, where friends may call from 10 AM until service time.  Interment will be at Arlington National Cemetery with full military honors provided by the United States Coast Guard.  In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the St. Stephen Lutheran Church Memorial Fund. Arthur touched so many lives and he will be deeply missed.