Love your family,
June 21st, 2025.
Until then, we will see you at the gates!
In 1971, Shunt was born in the then-small town of Vienna, Virginia. He comes from a big, loving Armenian family. He was the first generation born in America, and boy was he ever an American. He had a passion and love for rock music instantly. He remembers being nine years old and his whole world came crashing down as John Lennon was killed in 1980. With other legends like Jimmy Page leading him to set his heart’s desire on becoming a lead guitarist. Growing up in Vienna, he took guitar lessons at 12 years old. His teacher at the time was getting rid of a 1979 Les Paul for $400. Boy, did Shunt ever mow so many lawns and wash so many windows for that money. After getting that guitar, he was off to the races, practicing and studying to play every single day. While he wanted badly to conform to receiving a university degree, like everyone else in his family, he decided to go rogue and hit the highway traveling to Tempe, Arizona, to pursue his music career. He was doing such a great job! He even started opening for a local band out there called Ted Green and even the Funk Junkies. It was when he auditioned to become their lead guitarist that he started to get ill in 1999. Shunt was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis by the end of 2000. Since then, it has been an ongoing battle, definitely a life change it never let him forget. But soon in 2006, he met his wife Amanda, where they went on to have their two brilliant boys, Garen and Zaven Nishanian, and life seemed to take a turn for the better. He now knew that one of his greatest accomplishments on earth would be his boys. One of the major highlights of his life was how proud his father was of him for bringing him grandsons. He had the only boys from his family to carry on the Nishanian name; he was so proud of that. Shunt was a great man, a great father, and a great husband. He was an awesome brother and the sweetest son any parents could ever have. Loved by so many! He would give the shirt off his back to any stranger, and his love for space was really undeniable.
Around 2004, he went back to college, Arizona State University, for a degree in business and mass communications because he could no longer play and follow his dreams. He graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's degree, being the top of his class. He was on the Dean’s list for the state of Arizona. For the once dropout that wasn’t too shabby at all, considering his GPA was an astonishing 4.09! During his schooling, he took astronomy, where his love for science and space heightened. It was undeniable his love for space, as every screensaver was an astronaut or the moon. That is why it is so important for us to send him to space, it just felt natural.
While things seemed to slide slowly with his disease in 2023 things got really bad and the struggle carried on until his departure. It being one of the hardest days of my life, I know that he is no longer struggling or in pain and that he watches over us every day. Our strongest angel, we love you forever and ever..until then, we will see you at the gates.
