Obituary of William "Kipper" Kipouras

William “Bill” Kipouras PEABODY—William “Kipper” Kipouras, 74, beloved husband of the late Carol (Saunders) (Stone) Kipouras, died unexpectedly on Wednesday morning July 2, 2014 at the North Shore Medical Center—Salem Hospital after being stricken at home. Born in Peabody, he was the son of the late George and Katherine (Pappas) Kipouras and was a lifelong resident of the city. He graduated from Peabody High School, Class of 1958 and furthered his education at Staley College. Bill passion for sports journalism began early, reporting for the Peabody Times. In the early 1960’s he began covering high school sports for the then Boston Herald Traveler, establishing the idea of “Athlete of the Week”, singling out a local high school athlete to expound on their accomplishments and potential. He culminated his career as a sports journalist working for the Salem Evening News sports department for more than 35 years, many of those as Sports Editor. Retiring in 2010, he continued to report on local sports, writing articles for the Peabody/Lynnfield Weekly Newspaper, and on radio North Shore 104.9’s North Shore Sports Desk. Bill’s coverage of high school sports impacted countless athletes. Affectionately known by most as “Kipper”, he was an icon in the sports community. If you plated sports, you knew him and more importantly, he knew you. Right up until his passing he would often be seen on the sidelines of high school games, intently watching the game. He was always greeted by former players or their families, and could always be counted on to recal, in minute detail, an athlete’s statistics and contributions, sometimes decades later. His professional accomplishments were many and were recognized with inductions into the Peabody High School Hall of Fame, the Salem State College Hall of Fame, and the Massachusetts Hockey Hall of Fame. In addition to his student-athlete focus, he also covered professional sporting events including the Boston Bruins, Superbowl games, and Olympic competitions. When not reporting, Bill often spent his time fishing with friends, and in his younger days, playing tennis. He was a devoted and faithful member of St. Vasilios Greek Orthodox Church and humbly supported many of its missions and community events. He will be missed by many, but mostly by his family. He is survived by his step-daughters and their husbands, Valerie & Steve Reid of Peabody and Lorri & Mac Seaver of Newbury; a step-son R. Kevin Stone & his wife Susan of Rumson, NJ; 11 grandchildren, Samuel Seaver of Newbury, Gretchen Lee of State College, PA, Paige Bernstein of Kensington, NH; Joshua Erickson of NY, NY, Timothy and Jessica Reid both of Peabody; Corwin Vervain of Tucson, AZ, Eleanor Boyce, and William, Margaret, and Elizabeth Boyce-Blanchard all of Ruymsford, NJ; one great-grandson, Russell Bernstein; two nieces, Angel Karedes and Charlene Karedes & her son Troy all of Durham, NH and a nephew Bill Karedes of Waltham. In addition to his wife and parents, he was predeceased by brothers Peter and Charles Kipouras and sister Eva Karedes. Relatives and friends are kindly invited to gather on Tuesday July 8, 2014 at 9 AM from the Conway, Cahill-Brodeur Funeral Home, 82 Lynn St., Peabody, followed by a Funeral Service at 10 AM in St. Vasilios Greek Orthodox Church, Peabody, with burial at Harmony Grove Cemetery, Salem, immediately following. A visitation will be held on Monday July 7th from 4 – 8 P.M. in the funeral home. Memorial donations may be made to St. Judes’ Children’s Research Hospital or the Agganis Foundation Scholarship, 85 Exchange St. Suite 218, Lynn, MA 01901.