Stelianos Kanakaris

Stelianos Kanakaris was born May 15, 1926 on the beautiful island of Syros in Greece.

Three years after his birth, his father Theodore set out to do what so many  Greeks have done.

They sailed to the United States to provide a better opportunity for their families.

Unfortunately, in 1929 we suffered our first great depression and once again the struggle began.

My father had to grow up very quickly and support his family in Greece during the depression and WWII.

31 years went by and in 1957 he was reunited with his father, Mother and two sisters in the United States.

In 1962 he returned to Greece to marry his sweetheart Evangelia Antoniadou. They returned to the United States and settled in Brooklyn, NY.  In July of 1963 they gave birth to their son Theodore.

Stelianos worked hard as many immigrants have done, and  together with his business partner built, sold and managed many restaurants and coffee shops.

He cheated death many times, from almost drowning in a cesspool at a young age, to being shot in the leg by the Nazis, and suffering a severe pneumonia in 2007.  He survived!

In June of 2015 at age 89 my father was diagnosed with Stage 4 small cell lung cancer and once again he vowed to fight. On September 28, 2015 at 6:10pm Stelianos Kanakaris gallantly ended his fight.

He is survived by his Son, Daughter-in-Law, Grandson, Sister and his short lived therapy dog Allie Mae. (Aliki)