Parish History: The Seventies and Eighties - Decades of Transformation, Part 2

In January of 1993, a new milestone was reached when Linda K. Zakas became the first woman to serve as parish president. During the two years of her presidency many capital projects were completed, and several new program initiatives were approved. Chief among them was the establishment of a basketball program for the children of the parish. This effort was a demonstration of the fact that one or two individuals, when armed with commitment and zeal, can make a tremendous difference.

This history would not be complete if we did not pause at this point to take note of another event that occurred in 1994. On June 23 of that year, Steven W. Maistrellis passed away at the age of 87. Born in Constantinople, Turkey, he came to this country as a young boy and attended the Peabody school system. After graduation from high school, he aspired to become an attorney, but the Depression made this dream impossible. He received a degree in mortuary science instead and became the funeral director for the people of our parish. It was in this role that Mr. Maistrellis assumed his place as a truly seminal figure in our collective history. His service to his people was long, compassionate, honorable and distinguished.

His first service to the community was rendered in 1930 when he was 23. At that time, he was asked by Mr. Batsinelas to attend the historic meeting of September 19, 1930, at which an attempt was to be made to restore the unity of the parish. Fluent in both Greek and English, he was enlisted to serve as a non-voting member to record the minutes of the meeting. As a result, he became the last living eyewitness to that momentous day. Mr. Maistrellis was tireless in his service to our community. He conducted citizenship classes for countless parishioners and drove them to citizenship hearings and ceremonies. He translated for doctors and patients and mediated between intimidated immigrants and municipal officials. In the 54 years he served the community, not a single member of the parish, not one, ever received a dreaded welfare funeral. He had vowed that every member of St. Vasilios would be laid to pious rest with honor and dignity regardless of station in life and ability to pay, and he remained faithful to that vow until the end of his life. He was honored outside of the community as well. He served for countless years as a member of the Board of Registrars, and as a trustee of the Josiah B. Thomas Hospital. The legendary Gregory Smith, president of the hospital board, once said of him, “He is the clearest definition of a gentleman and a professional that I have ever met.”

He was also a trusted confidant and, in some cases, a mentor to six pastors and countless pastoral assistants who served this parish. It is not accidental that when Fr. Economides returned to America after an absence of 23 years, he first asked to meet with Mr. Maistrellis. Perhaps his closest relationship was with Fr. Demotses with whom he worked faithfully for more than 21 years. Fr. Demotses always expressed affection and gratitude for the guidance and advice that he received as a young man of 26 from Mr. Maistrellis. The last funeral Mr. Maistrellis conducted was for Fr. George Christulides, and he retired in 1989. The writers of this history are grateful for the opportunity to honor him for his unique place in the story of St. Vasilios.

In this same way, we also wish to mark with special gratitude the unique service and extraordinary contribution of John Franggos. He joined the Parish Council during the last year of Louis Karavolas’ presidency and remained on the Council for a period that extended well over three decades. During those years of exceptional service, he served the parish in every constitutional office as secretary, treasurer, vice president and president. It was fitting that during his presidency the Educational Center mortgage was discharged and the related celebrations took place. After leaving the Parish Council, he served as Fr. Andrew’s Ecclesiarch (lay supervisor of church services) for more than 10 years until his untimely death. No member of our parish remained untouched by his optimism, kindness and generosity of spirit. May his memory be eternal.

In 1995 Vasilios Stephanides assumed the presidency of the parish and worked to maintain the momentum that had been established in the preceding years. During his year of service a new membrane roof was installed on the Educational Center at a cost of $66,000 and the underground oil tanks on the church's property were removed as the transition to all natural gas was completed. In September of that year, the pre-school program, New Beginnings, was also established. During the two-year term of his successor, Michael S. Zolotas, the planned restoration of the Educational Center was brought to completion. This project, begun in 1990 during the presidency of Mr. Kalivas, had taken seven years to complete but had resulted in a building that was now ready to render many more years of service to the parish. When Mr. Zolotas left office in December of 1997, a renewed building was the legacy that he and his immediate predecessors left in their place.

The accomplishment was remarkable. The building had an all-new, technologically advanced heating system, new roofs, floors and ceilings, new lighting and electrical systems, as well as newly painted and refurbished classrooms. At the end of 1997, it was estimated that, on average, the building was being visited by 4,000 people a week, participating in the programs it offered and on weekdays, was open from 7:30 a.m. until 9:00 p.m. It had become a true resource both to the parish and to the larger community. Although the cost of this achievement was approximately $150,000, it had been accomplished while keeping the parish entirely debt free.

The year 1998 dawned with the hope that the parish would enjoy a quiet period of respite and consolidation. Events outside of the parish, however, had conspired to unsettle the tranquility of the church. In 1996 Archbishop Iakovos retired as Archbishop after more than three decades of service and was succeeded by Archbishop Spiridon. This succession, however, proved to be controversial and difficult. It is not the task of this history to judge the merits of the arguments of either side of the issues. That is a judgment best left to more competent historians. As the crisis deepened, however, individual parishes became involved as hierarchs, priests and individual parishioners began to champion one position or another. In spite of the determined effort of Fr. Demotses to keep the parish from becoming involved in the increasing strife and dissension, the issue of the Archbishop and his policies was raised at a General Assembly in October of 1998. The president of the community resigned. As had happened so many times in the past, however, the church, in a moment of great potential difficulty, found a man of courage and commitment to assume the mantle of responsibility. The vice-president, Angelo Scangas, stepped to the podium, calmly and even-handedly conducted the remainder of the meeting and brought it to a peaceful close.

For the remaining two months of 1998 and for three years thereafter, Mr. Scangas provided the church with exemplary leadership characterized by the even-handed sobriety that had been shown so many decades before in the person of Theodore Fotopoulos. He enjoyed the respect and admiration of the council and used them for the good of the community. During a presidency that began under difficult circumstances, his accomplishments were numerous, and the church remains grateful for his service.

Thankfully, the increasing turmoil in the Archdiocese left the parish largely unaffected. On December 20, 1998, in fact, Archbishop Spiridon paid a pastoral visit to St. Vasilios that was uneventful and pleasant. In August of 1999, however, as the crisis in the Archdiocese deepened and the possibility of schism loomed, Archbishop Spiridon was removed from office by the Ecumenical Patriarchate and replaced with Archbishop Demetrios. Tensions quickly subsided, tranquility was restored and the attention of all could once again be turned to more immediate and parochial concerns.

The Educational Center and the old Greek School had been completely renewed. The final remaining part of the master plan, formulated almost a decade before, remained unfinished-the church itself. The Parish Council realized that the church was the jewel in the crown of our parish complex. Not only was it the oldest and most important building, it was the one which had the greatest emotional resonance for the parish. Its restoration would need to be approached with great care and sensitivity. Mr. Scangas appointed a committee to study the project and formulate a plan. Meeting throughout the months of February, March and April, the committee, with the advice and volunteered help of architect Philip Kritikos, was able to formulate a preliminary evaluation of the scope of the work needed, together with an approximate estimate of potential costs. With this in hand, the Parish Council called a General Assembly on May 17, 1999, to seek approval to proceed. At that meeting the proposal was presented in detail, and the assembly was informed that a basic restoration would cost an estimated $350,000. The assembly took unprecedented action; it authorized the Parish Council to proceed with the restoration but set no limit on the amount to be spent so long as the funds had been raised.

Throughout much of 1999 the work of the restoration committee continued. Historic photographs of the church were examined, and options in the designs and materials to be used were carefully considered. Cost estimates were refined, and by the beginning of September, Mr. Kritikos was preparing the final drawings. As this work proceeded, the fund-raising drive was launched. The response of the parishioners was both heartwarming and generous. As the donations came, they were accompanied by letters expressing the excitement and satisfaction of the donors. Donations also began to arrive from former parishioners who had moved to Florida, Michigan, and other far-flung areas but still retained a loyalty and love of St. Vasilios. The amount collected quickly passed the $100,000 mark and continued to grow rapidly. Within months, the $200,000 mark had been reached and quickly exceeded. Soon $300,000 was on hand and the gifts continued. When the drive was finally completed, almost $500,000 had been received.

The committee quickly perceived that the membership of the parish wanted a quality restoration. The committee now had the option to choose the finest materials and to restore all of the beautiful ornamentation that the building had lost over the previous 80 years. In January of 2001, bids were solicited, a contractor was chosen and, on March 19, work began. By the end of September, the project was substantially completed, and the final checklist was finished. On December 1, 2001, the contractor officially left the job.

Work on the interior began on January 8, 2002, and was completed on April 10. At its completion, the entire restoration had cost $465,000, and the remaining $47,000 on hand was allocated for alterations to the parlor room of the Educational Center. Those alterations and enhancements were completed in the parlor room and classrooms over the years 2003-2005. Except for an extensive rebuilding of a collapsed retaining wall in the south parking lot during the presidency of James Danforth, no further substantial capital projects have been undertaken.

There was, however, little time for respite; at a meeting of the Parish Council on June 21, 2004, Stephen Kalivas proposed the formation of a committee to prepare a program of celebration for the parish Centennial year barely 18 months away. Mr. Danforth responded by appointing Mr. Kalivas chairman, and the planning began.

The committee was composed of a diverse group of people representing all of the parish organizations and constituencies. Throughout the remainder of 2004 and for much of 2005, the committee met monthly as did its various sub-committees. At the end of the planning process, a schedule of events, stretching over the entire Centennial year, had been developed. The schedule was carefully calculated to be as inclusive as possible so that every parishioner, regardless of means, would be able to participate in at least four of the events. The committee felt it particularly important that all proceeds from the Centennial be deposited in the endowment of the parish in order to strengthen its ministry and outreach in the second century of its existence. In May of 2005, the committee presented the program it had formulated. Four events were to be entirely free. Two concerts, one of religious music to be held in the church, the other, a cultural program to be held in the Wiggin Auditorium of Peabody City Hall, were not priced to be major sources of income. The committee presented its plans to the Parish Council in May of 2005 and received final approval.

The original intent of the committee was to raise $100,000 for the endowment. As its plans progressed, however, that figure was quickly raised to $250,000 and then to $350,000. The principal sources of that income were to be a special endowment fund drive and the publication of a Centennial souvenir album. In January of 2006, the celebration began with a visit from His Eminence Metropolitan Methodios. Shortly thereafter, a letter was sent to 100 parishioners who had shown great generosity in the past soliciting their gift of $1,000 in honor of the Centennial. Their response was overwhelming, and instead of raising the intended $100,000, more than $220,000 was received. The album, through the tireless efforts of Nicholas Sarantopoulos, raised an additional $160,000 when the Centennial year had concluded. At the conclusion of the 2006 Centennial year, Mr Stephen Kalivas reported that more than $400,000 had been raised to strengthen the endowment.

The history of St. Vasilios Church could never be complete if it did not also pay tribute to the unique and inestimable contribution of a very special person - Kay Lekos. Kay joined the staff of the parish at the end of Fr. Xanthakis’ pastorate and served the church without interruption as office manager and bookkeeper for 45 years. During those years she worked with five assistant secretaries - Dolores Cassidy, Anita Gargas, Helen Terzakis, Mary Caico and Effie Chigas - and also worked for six months after her announced retirement date to train and support her successor, Irene Stephanides.

Her loyalty to the pastors and assistant priests under whom she served was unstinting; her devotion to St. Vasilios was unwavering; and her love for the many members of St. Vasilios whom she served and supported was boundless. She oversaw more than 40 annual professional audits and during that entire period not a single penny remained uncounted. Her presence was a bridge linking the past, present and future of the parish, and her mark on our collective lives as a community will always be both indelible and warmly remembered.

The end of the Centennial celebration also marked another significant ending. In September of 2005, Fr. Demotses had announced to the Parish Council his intention to retire from the active priesthood after 40 years of service, 39 of them spent at St. Vasilios. On November 17, 2006, Metropolitan Methodios announced the appointment of Fr. Demotses’ successor, Fr. Christopher Foustoukos, who had served with Fr. Demotses as an altar boy 35 years earlier.

When Fr. Demotses celebrated his final liturgy as pastor on Christmas Eve, December 24, 2006, an era truly came to an end. At the conclusion of that pastorate, Fr. Demotses had served St. Vasilios for 39 years to the day. During that time he celebrated more than 8,000 liturgies, weddings, baptisms, funerals and services of prayer. He had made more than 20,000 hospital visitations and more than 1,500 visits to shut-ins to distribute the sacraments. He served with 22 church presidents, 6 Philoptochos presidents, 30 P.T.A. presidents, 15 Men’s Club presidents, 12 full and part time assistant priests, and had mentored 16 deacons of the church in preparation for their ordination to the priesthood. The membership of the parish, in turn, had doubled in size from 800 to 1600 families. In grateful recognition of his service, the parish named the Educational Center in his honor and granted him the title of Pastor Emeritus.

Fr. Demotses also enjoyed a unique pleasure given to very few priests. The last president to serve the parish during his long pastorate was Speros Venios. Fr. Demotses had baptized Speros, who had served eight years as an altar boy with him, and was the youngest person ever elected to the office of parish president. Their long bonds of mutual respect and affection brought this historic pastorate to its fitting end.

As we read the pages of this history, may the heroes it commemorates serve as our inspiration in the present, so that we, too, might become a true blessing both to our own posterity, as well as to a future known only to God.

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