Georgia Kallos

Georgia Kallos (née Dimitrakopoulou) fell asleep in the Lord on February 27, 2023, at home surrounded by her loving family following a decade-long struggle with Alzheimer’s disease. She is survived by her husband Anastasios “Tom” Kallos, daughter Constandina K. “Dina” Dalianis, son-in-law Ares G. Dalianis, and two grandchildren, Anastasia and George Dalianis of Park Ridge, IL; as well as her brother Arthinodoros and several nieces and nephews in Greece. She is preceded in death by her beloved sisters, Yiannoula and Stavroula. She will be remembered by all who knew her for her infectious joy, deep compassion and selflessness, and extraordinary courage throughout a childhood and young adulthood plagued by war and political upheaval.

Born on August 13, 1929, in Greka, Olympias, Greece, Georgia grew up in a rural, mountainous village under the ever-present threat of famine during the Great Depression. After her mother’s death when Georgia was only three years old, she was raised by her father, who had previously lived in the United States for several years working to build the country’s developing network of railroads. Georgia’s formal education ended in 4th grade, when her school closed due to the invasion of Greece by Mussolini’s troops and the subsequent occupation by the Nazis from 1941 to 1944.

The political fallout of World War II had consequences for Greece almost as dire as the war itself: the attempts of both Great Britain and Germany to control the government led to the eruption of civil war, as opposing rebel groups of communists and fascists who had served as resistance fighters fought to gain power. When a group of communist guerrilla fighters marched into Georgia’s village demanding supplies under threat of death, Georgia and her family were unable to resist. As a teenager, she, along with her donkey and farm animals, was forcibly recruited to assist the guerrillas with their operations in the mountains. As conditions progressively worsened, with more and more villages like Georgia’s caught in the crossfire of the National Army and the rebels, Georgia and her family knew they needed a way out. Sponsored by her uncle, Gus G. Manoles, a tailor in Des Moines, Iowa, Georgia immigrated to America from Greece in 1960, leaving her family behind in the hopes that she could support them through the economic devastation which had resulted from the civil war.

In 1962, Anastasios Kalogeropoulos of Ottawa, Canada came to visit Gus G. Manoles’s tailor shop while staying with his aunt in Ames, having heard about the beautiful young woman who had recently arrived with her benefactor. Anastasios moved to Des Moines, having fled Greece in 1958, and married Georgia in 1964, later Americanizing his name to Tom Kallos. They settled in Des Moines with their daughter Dina (and Uncle Gus). Georgia became an American citizen in 1970, studying on her own and passing the citizenship exam. Despite her lack of formal education, she was inquisitive and constantly learning. She remained a voracious reader throughout her life, and loved following the stock market.

During the almost 50 years that they spent in Des Moines, Tom and Georgia were at the center of the Greek Orthodox community. Georgia was a member of the Ladies Philoptochos Society while Tom, the restaurateur, was in charge of cooking on church feast days and the annual Greek Food Fair.

Georgia’s greatest joy was her grandchildren and she was an integral part of their lives from the time that they were babies. In 2008, when the house next door to Dina and her family became available, Tom and Georgia moved to Park Ridge. An incredibly dedicated and loving yiayia, she saw Anastasia and George every day, supporting them throughout the challenges and successes of their young lives. Georgia took over the connected backyard between her house and her family’s next door, planting a garden where she worked well into her 80s, growing enough produce each summer to rival a farmers’ market. Even in later years, her energy remained unparalleled, as she baked for her grandchildren, went for long walks, hand-built a fence to protect her garden, and sang folk songs from her native Greece. Georgia will always serve as an inspiration to her loved ones and to her community, and as a reminder that love, strength, and family can be grown and cultivated no matter what the circumstances.

Please make charitable donations in Georgia’s memory to the National Ladies Philoptochos Society, Social Services Program at https://www.philoptochos.org/donation/. Donations may also be mailed to National Philoptochos Office, 126 East 37th Street, New York, NY 10016 and indicate “Social Services Program” on the memo line.

Funeral services will be held on Saturday, March 4, 2023, at 12:00pm at St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church, 2350 E. Dempster St., Des Plaines, IL 60016. Visitation will be at the church from 11:30am until the time of service. Burial will follow at Town of Maine Cemetery, Park Ridge. Arrangements by Demeros Funeral and Cremation Services. For information, please call 847-302-7176 or visit www.demerosfh.com