It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of AJ Kirk. A true force of good in the yo-yo community who we will never forget.

AJ’s impact on the yo-yo community and the friendships he made will be forever eternal. His passion for the sport and for enjoying life to its fullest was obvious from the minute you met him. A mentor in so many ways he personally devoted his time to trying to make others happy wherever he was. From teaching new kids their first throw at YoYoJoe’s Yo-Yo Club to his amazing work in hospitals – putting smiles on people’s faces who needed love and hope more than ever. The minute he walked into a yo-yo contest you knew he was there – high energy and so much fun. He touched so many lives and the world is a better place because of him.

A member of Team YoYoJam from the early days he had a long competition career even placing 3rd in 5A at the 2006 World Yo-Yo Contest. Locally he worked hard to support the local scene at Mitchell’s (and later YoYoJoe’s) and co-hosted the YoYoRadio Internet Show with Joe Mitchell. He helped judge contests across the east coast and was always willing to help out wherever & whenever he could. He was also an avid juggler and performer – balancing chairs on his head and pulling off a 5 ball cascade. Most recently he helped create the Tiki Tiki YoYo Club in Delaware and had an amazing following of people. His signature series yo-yo the Ring Master was everything he had hoped for in a design and I can still remember how happy he was the day that became a reality.

His presence in our community will be forever missed. RIP our friend and thank you for the memories.