Obituary of Georgia (Zagorites) Salaris

Georgia (Zagorites) Salaris died peacefully on March 7, 2018 at the Kaplan Family Hospice House in Danvers, MA with her family by her side following a brief illness. The daughter of James and Bessie (Boutselis) Zagorites, Georgia was born and raised in Lowell. Georgia met and fell in love with John Salaris upon his return from service in the Pacific as a member of the Army Air Corps during World War II. After marrying, John and Georgia, or “Jo” as she was called by the Zagorites side of the family, settled in Peabody, John’s hometown. They shared a happy marriage for 67 years until her loving husband passed on in 2013. Georgia is survived by her two daughters, Suzanne Lanzikos, and her husband, Paul, of Beverly Farms, and Valerie Splaine, and her husband, Michael, of Danvers. She loved both her sons-in-law as she loved her own two children. She was the grandmother of Sasha and Tema Lanzikos, both of whom were so very special to her. Tema and “Grammy” were also best of friends spending many a night sharing stories over shrimp scampi suppers made by Grammy with love. She leaves behind her sister, Mary Paisios of Hinsdale, Illinois, and her sister-in-law, Stasia Inglis of Peabody. She also leaves many loving nieces and nephews. She was pre-deceased by her siblings, Peter Zagorites, Helen Kourembis, Eva Koutsos, and Poti Zagorites. Georgia graduated from Lowell High School. She learned to sew at an early age at the Church of All Nations in Lowell. She became an expert seamstress and taught others how to sew. Many will fondly remember Georgia as the owner of Georgia’s Bridal Room in South Peabody. With her exquisite sense of fashion, for twenty years, Georgia made many young women feel like a Princess as she helped brides choose the perfect gown. She single-handedly outfitted numerous large bridal parties and was quite proud that all of Mayor Torigian’s daughters got their gowns at Georgia’s Bridal Room. Georgia was an avid golfer and, over the years, played countless rounds of golf with “Johnnie” as well as her many good golfing friends. She was known as a superb putter, regularly winning putting awards. Her favorite location to play was the Middleton Golf Course. John and Georgia enjoyed traveling to Nassau in the Bahamas with family and friends where they frequently golfed at Cable Beach and Paradise Island. Closer to home, they made frequent trips to Cape Cod to golf with friends and vacation with family. Georgia was a faithful congregant of St. Vasilios Church in Peabody. She was an active member of the Daughters of Penelope and the Philoptochos Society, both for over fifty years. She generously gave of her time, volunteering for numerous benefits often baking Greek delicacies and delivering gifts to older church members. Georgia made many cherished friendships which she maintained over scores of years. Her close friends and family will always remember her as being kind and caring as well as witty, enjoying a good joke and regaling in heartfelt stories. She was a devoted spouse, a proud and caring mother, and a doting grandmother. She will be remembered fondly by her family and friends. Relatives and friends are kindly invited to visitation on WEDNESDAY, March 14th at the Conway Cahill-Brodeur Funeral Home, 82 Lynn Street, Peabody, MA, from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. A funeral service will be held on THURSDAY, March 15th at 10 a.m. at St. Vasilios Greek Orthodox Church, Peabody, MA. Burial will be at the Cedar Grove Cemetery. Memorial donations may be made to St. Vasilios Greek Orthodox Church, 5 Paleologos Street, Peabody, MA 01960 or North Shore Elder Services, 300 Rosewood Drive, Suite 200, Danvers, MA 01923.