Greg Zenk

Greg Zenk, 83, of Butler, passed away Monday, October 29, 2018, at Visiting Nurse and Hospice Home in Fort Wayne. Greg was born in Elgin, Illinois, on May 25, 1935, to Anthony and Marjorie Osborne Zenk. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Meg; his children, Mari (Keith) Sanders, Gerald (Becky), Kristien (Audra), Amanda (Dave) Stechschulte, and Melinda (Tim) Zenk-Johnson; nine grandchildren, Ashleigh (Arick) Stall, Ian (Sara) Sanders, Brittany (Danny) Gregus, Aubrie (Noah) Tinsley, Hannah Stechschulte, Mary Grace Stechschulte, Gregory Stechschulte, Maria Zenk-Johnson, and Margaret Zenk-Johnson; and seven great grandchildren, two on earth - Felicity Stall and Maddox Sanders, and five in heaven - Angelus Stall, Jude Stall, Gabriel Stall, Micah Stall, and Philomena Rose Gregus. Greg was preceded in death by his parents, four brothers, and one sister. Greg attended Loras College, IUPUFW, and the University of Saint Francis, majoring in art. He authored several short stories, poems, the comic series "Stump," and books including the published work, The Legend of the Earth Stars, and the lyrics for the recently produced song "Bettin' on the Come." He served two years in the U.S. Navy and was a Precinct Committeeman in Kane County, Illinois. Greg was part-owner of Zenk Brothers Grocery, Kane County's once oldest grocery and meat market, and he was the owner of Zenk's Restaurant in downtown Elgin, Illinois. He relocated to Butler, Indiana, to work for the new Auburn Foundry as the Melt Supervisor. Greg was an avid woodworker, creating hundreds of pieces of barnwood furniture and for more than a decade he sold these crafts through his "Barnwood Hollow" business. He was a supremely inquisitive and kind man who had a gift for putting others at ease; his children especially enjoyed bringing friends home to visit, as their dad had a sincere humor, a playful spirit, and made killer chili and strawberry crepes. His passions included golf, fishing, and bowling, but of overall importance to him were the love and care of his family. Feller and Clark, Auburn, Indiana, are handling arrangements which include no formal calling, but all are welcome at a Mass of Christian burial at Saint Michael the Archangel Church, Waterloo, Indiana, at 11 am on November 2, 2018 with internment at the church cemetery at a later date. Preferred memorials are to the Heimach Center, Auburn, Indiana.