John "Jack" P Zenz

His mission in life was to make those around him laugh. John "Jack" P. Zenz 78, of Minneapolis, MN, and Green Valley, AZ, passed away peacefully on May 8th, 2026. He was preceded in death by his father, Francis "Pete" H. Zenz; mother, Bernadette "Bernie" M. Zenz; niece, Katie Joy Dannenberg; sister-in-law, Becky Zenz; great nephew, Dylan Holmquist; and brother-in-law, Jay Sundt.

Jack is survived by his wife, Donna; daughter Kelly Livingston (Chuck Heisick); son Nicholas (Carrie); and granddaughters, Ruby and Macie. He is also survived by his siblings, Kathy (Dean) Holmquist, Mary (Wayne) Greve, David, Joanne Sundt, Peter (Mary), and Gary, along with many beloved nieces and nephews.

Jack proudly served in the United States Army from 1965-1969, including service in Okinawa, Japan. Following honorable discharge, he met and married the love of his life, Donna M. Chelmo, in 1971. Jack affectionately referred to her as "Hot Lips" and together they celebrated 54 years of marriage. Their adventures took them across the U.S. by motorcycle, and Europe by bicycle. Over the years Jack worked as a grocer, electronic technician, and optician, eventually retiring as an ophthalmic technician. His many hobbies included cracking jokes, helping others, motorcycling, traveling, birding, reading, and flower gardening. He loved dive bar hopping with friends and family, playing bingo, listening to music of all kinds, bicycling and flying RC airplanes with his crew in Green Valley, AZ - where he was jokingly referred to as "Crash."

Jack was blessed to have two granddaughters, Ruby and Macie Zenz, along with a bonus great-granddaughter, Lark. Being a grandpa was undoubtedly one of the greatest joys of his life. Jack's optimism, humor, and zest for life will be forever remembered. He was known for his random acts of kindness toward those less fortunate, and for blessing his loved ones with perfectly thought-out gifts. He will be deeply missed.

A funeral service will be held on Wednesday, July 22nd, at 9:30 am at the Fort Snelling Memorial Chapel, 1 Tower Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55450. Military funeral honors will follow at the Fort Snelling National Cemetery at 11:30am. A Celebration of Life will begin immediately following at the Kraus-Hartig VFW Post 6587, 8100 Pleasant View Dr NE, Spring Lake Park, MN 55432.

In lieu of flowers please consider donation to the VA Hospital as we cannot accept flower arrangements at the Fort Snelling Chapel or Cemetery. Flower arrangements can be received at the VFW.

Jack always wanted to leave this world with a laugh so In his own words: "See, I told you I was sick."

Funeral arrangements are entrusted to the: Funeral and Cremation Service of Rush City, Olson Chapel

FuneralAndCremationService.com