Maria Giannakos
June 1912 - November 2020
I am Nick Georgitsos, Maria's first and oldest grandson. I am also the voice of the loved ones we have lost through the years.
My family was completely devastated last year first with the death of my younger brother Angelo, my grandmother Maria ,and aunt Sophia's husband Theodore all within a few months and did not have a chance to enter a proper obituary at that time.
This memorial page is dedicated to her and the Giannakos family.
Giannakos family from left to right Maria's oldest daughter Stella, youngest son Ilias, my Grandmother Maria and my Grandfather Evangelos, my mom Vasiliki, Sophia and Charles Giannakos
(photo is circa 1952 in their home town of Tarapsa now Vasilakion Greece)
Grandma's house in Vasilakion where she and Grandpa raised their family, a mud and stone structure likely built during the Turkish occupation of Greece is still standing today.
​
That's aunt Sophia with her groceries walking up to the gate.
Maria Giannakos ,my grandmother was born in the small town of a Asimi Peloponnisos on June 21 between 1910 and 1912 when she was in her early twenties she married Evangelos Giannakos and moved to the small town of Tarapsa now called Vasilakion south of the city of Sparta and a 30 minute drive north of the coastal town of Gythio Greece ,raising five children during the hard years after the war in Greece
.in the mid-60s my father the late Konstantine Georgitsos and my mother Bessie (Giannakos) brought her to Ottawa Canada where she lived with us and the Platana family in a house on Ralph Street downtown Ottawa, my father also sponsored her when he brought her to Canada and arranged for her Canadian citizenship through proper immigration channels .she lived with us and her son the late Charles Giannakos and his family on Don street helped raise my brother and I ,and Charles's daughters Cathy and Maria Giannakos (later Evan) also Uncle George and aunt Stella(Giannakos) children Nick and Angelo before they moved to New York.
,The family brought the youngest son Ilias to Canada in the early 1970s and helped him obtain his Canadian citizenship ,he also lived with us and his brother Charlie until he eventually married Louise and later purchased a house down the road with a little bit of financial help from his brother Charlie Giannakos, where he would raise his family with his two young Sons Angelo and Kris Giannakos and where Grandma lived mostly ,to help raise his young family as well
,until her son Ilias eventually brought her to Sparta Greece and put her in the retirement home there until her passing in 2020 .
Grandma would always say I have raised all of you if there's one thing I know how to do is raise children and I love all of you the same!
This photo was taken at the retirement residence in Sparta Greece September 2019 when I visited her with my buddy Moe while in Greece finalizing legal documents for the Olive orchards that my grandfather Nicholas has left us in Dafni.
Grandma was so surprised and happy to see me as you can see I left her a picture of my daughter Denika where she kept it on the wall beside her bed ,every morning she woke sat up and sung songs to her.
​
Unfortunately shortly after my return to Canada we learned the devastating news of my brother Angelo's diagnosis and also with COVID restrictions we couldn't go to Greece and she never actually had a chance to meet Denika her youngest great grandchild.
​
My Daughter often sits in her highchair in the morning looks up and starts giggling and smiling then she starts to sing songs she learned in daycare, sometimes I wonder...
we all miss you dearly Yiayia!