Obituary of Evangelos Anastasios Mavrogeorgis

Evangelos Anastasios Mavrogeorgis was born on March 1, 1937 in Chios, Greece. His parents were Anastasios and Eleni (Foustanas) Mavrogeorgis. He was the youngest and last surviving sibling of Pantelis Mavrogeorgis, Marjora Kakarithou and Emilia Psillos. He is survived by his son Peter and wife Blake Olmstead and granddaughter Evangeline; his daughter Eleni and her husband Paul Glader and their two daughters, Cate and Emmy.

Evangelos grew up in a village called Agios Georgios Sikousis on the island of Chios. In 1941, when he was 4 years old, his village fell under Nazi German occupation until 1944. In later years, he shared stories with his children and granddaughters about how difficult life was for everybody and how hungry he was as a child. 

In his brother Pantelis’ words, reflecting on the occupation, “I came to understand, in a tangible way, not from theory, the true meaning of the words ‘slavery’ and ‘freedom.’ I also learned about the sweetness of life and the bitterness of death.”

Shortly after World War II, Greece became engulfed in two waves of civil war during his school years. Despite those obstacles, he loved reading and was an excellent student. He went on to study medicine at the University of Athens after which he served in the Greek Navy as an officer.

In 1971, he traveled to the United States for a residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in cardiology. He met his future wife, Catherine, a Brooklyn native, who worked at the same hospital.

He returned to Greece, per visa rules, to serve as a doctor on his home island. Catherine joined him in Chios, where they married and lived for a few years.

During their time in Chios a military takeover, political instability and Catherine’s pregnancy with their first child all factored into their emigration to the US and a new life in NY. 

First came Peter, then his sister Eleni. A few years later, Evangelos became a partner in a medical group on Long Island. Family and friends drew him back to Greece to visit regularly in the summertime with his wife and children. 

He relished spending a few days in Athens when traveling to and from his beloved home island. He attended the Greek Orthodox church regularly and was committed to helping friends and family with their medical needs. He often made house calls in both New York and Greece. He read the New York Times from front to back each day. Always caring and gentle-natured he was truly a family man, devoted husband and father. He invented endearing nicknames for his granddaughters such as “Katinaki” and “Emaki.” He cherished family dinners, family photos and family film nights.

He never lost his fascination with medicine and loved to read the New England Journal of Medicine and JAMA far into retirement. He spent much of his days making social rounds on the telephone, calling friends and family across Greece and America. He was fond of Greek music, rock and pop. He enjoyed concerts and was a fairly regular attendee of his son’s performances in NYC. He also enjoyed dining out, vacationing with his family and going for (βόλτες) walks.