January 13, 2000 – May 29, 2026
“Live fast and die young” — it was never just a saying for Jacob Garrett Hunsperger. It was a creed, a personality, a way of moving through the world that made those who loved him laugh, worry, and love him all the more fiercely. On Friday, May 29, 2026, Jacob left us at 26 years old, doing exactly what he lived for: going fast. The crack that opened in our hearts that day will never fully close.
Jacob came into the world on January 13, 2000, at KU Medical Center, and from his very first breath he was a force. He latched onto his dad, Jeff, and his sister, Peyton, from the start — and anyone who knows the Hunspergers knows that love in our family is never quiet. We are opinionated, hard-headed, and passionate to our bones. Our relationships are seasoned with slammed doors, heated words, and the kind of arguments that only happen between people who care too much to hold back. And underneath all of it? An unshakeable love. Solid at its core. The kind that doesn’t need to be explained to be understood.
Jacob was a natural athlete — gifted in football, baseball, and wrestling — but it was speed where he truly came alive. Jacob channeled it into competitive jet ski racing on the national stage. For a guy who was otherwise so laid-back, so easy in his own skin, there was something electric that happened when he opened up the throttle. That was Jacob free.
He carried that same intensity into his work. Jacob built his craft as a locksmith with Same Day Locksmith and channeled his entrepreneurial spirit into founding Jaxx Lock and Key. He didn’t just work hard; he took pride in what his hands could do.
Jacob had the kind of personality that filled a room without trying to. His family was everything to him, and so was his found family — the brotherhood he built with Peyton Vance, Ben Rockers, Gage Gulley, and Carter Keehn. Those bonds were forged in loyalty, laughter, and shared miles, and they will carry forward long after he’s gone.
Jacob was preceded in death by his grandfather, Garrett “Papa” Hunsperger, and we take some comfort in knowing those two are together again.
The rest of us are left to hold the memories. His father, Jeff, of Edgerton, and his sister, Peyton, of Overland Park. His sister, Alix Gates, in Phoenix, Arizona, and his little brother, Sam, in Louisburg. His grandmother, Terry, of Overland Park, and his Uncle and Aunt, Jim and Jaclyn, of Gardner. Last but not least, his beloved cousins, Ben and Gage of Olathe, and Emma of Gardner.
A Celebration of Life for Jacob will be held on Wednesday, June 24th at Warren Place in Gardner, Kansas from 6:00-9:00. Please join his family as we share our memories and honor this special man
Obituary published by Bruce Funeral Home.
