Pastor Gregory Shane Cynova

Pastor Gregory Shane Cynova, 72, of Franklin, Indiana passed away Tuesday morning, April 30, 2019, at his residence following an extended battle with cancer.

Born in Junction City, Kansas on February 22, 1947, to Bruno and Mae Cynova, Pastor Cynova was the son of a carpenter and homemaker who prized hard work and family. They raised their children in the Church and family life centered on being in Church or with the extended family.

Pastor Cynova married Ilene M. Milz, of Detroit, Michigan on July 11, 1970, and they celebrated their 42nd anniversary before her death July 13, 2012. They were blessed with two children, Lisa M. Cynova and Timothy S. Cynova (Angel). On June 9, 2013, Pastor married Linda Hopkins (Hood) who survives him at their home in Franklin, IN. He is also survived by a stepson, Scott Hopkins (Jessica); a brother, Gale Cynova (Elainea),and a sister, Kay Moore (Robert); brother-in-laws, Norman Milz (Char) and Jim Hood (Jackie); mother-in-law, Blanche Hood; and by nieces, Crystal Moore, Erin Moore, Rebecca Pratt (Milz)(Phillip), and Elizabeth Hood; and nephews, Daniel Moore and Nathan Milz.

Pastor Cynova graduated from Junction City High School in 1965, attended Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas and Concordia Teachers College in Seward, Nebraska. Upon graduation in 1969, he served as a Lutheran Day School teacher in Trinity Lutheran School, Hobart, Indiana. In 1977, he entered Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, graduating with a Masters of Arts in Religion, 1980. Called to Our Saviour Lutheran Church in Evansville, Indiana he served there for over fifteen years. In 1994, he was called to serve Trinity Lutheran Church on the Southside of Fort Wayne, Indiana, where he served until his retirement at the end of February 2013.

He served as a Circuit counselor, an institutional Chaplain, and coordinator of Bible Institutes and Evangelism Workshops. He was a delegate to three Synodical Conventions representing the congregations of the Evansville East Circuit and the Fort Wayne South Circuit of the Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod.

Pastor Cynova was active on every level of Lutheran Women’s Missionary League (LWML), serving multiple terms as Zone Counselor, a term as Indiana District Counselor, and as LWML Pastoral Counselor on the national level.

He was active in local missions and helped establish St. Augustine Lutheran Church, an African Immigrant congregation and a Hispanic Mission congregation. His hobbies included photography, woodworking, and hymn writing. A collection of nearly 250 hymns that he wrote during his career was published shortly before his death as A Shepherd’s Hymns ( http://bit.ly/CynovaHymnal ).

After retirement, Pastor held membership in Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Franklin, IN.

Funeral services for Pastor Cynova will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 4, 2019, at the Trinity Lutheran Church, 7819 Decatur Road, Fort Wayne, IN. Following the service, Pastor will await the resurrection next to Ilene in Trinity’s cemetery.

Friends and family will be received from 2-5 and 6-8 p.m. on Friday in the Zwick & Jahn Funeral Home – Decatur and also one hour prior to services Saturday at the church.

In lieu of flowers, pastor’s family would ask that memorial gifts can be directed to Trinity Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne, LWML, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, or IU Simon Cancer Center.