Myrna A. Mellis

Myrna was born in Atlantic City, NJ on July 27, 1938 to loving parents John and Mary Hatzis. As a toddler, she spent time in her father’s restaurant & diner in Atlantic City with comedians Bud Abbot and Lou Costello who enjoyed playing with baby Myrna when they visited the diner. She later welcomed younger sister, Stacy and then brother Gus into the family, and spent a good deal of time with her loving grandparents, Constantine & Athena Pappas. Though her early childhood was a happy one, tragically at the age of 10 years old she lost her father from leukemia. At the same time her father’s partners took advantage of her mother while Myrna’s father was in the hospital only to end up bankrupting her father’s successful business and causing his widow and three children to lose their home and move in with her grandparent’s one bedroom apartment. When her grandfather bought a home in Fair Oaks, PA for the entire family – young Myrna thought was a mansion. A few years later, her mother married Chris Kouvaris and they later welcomed her little brother “Johnny”. Admittingly young Myrna was not keen on having her mother remarry (they were even nervous telling her she was getting another sibling); however, she adored her little brother and came to realize how meaningful it was for her mother to have a partner to share her life with. Though everyone seemed to dote on little Johnny, Myrna took on the role of being the disciplinarian, scolding him when she thought he got out of line. Of course, that only made her more endearing to him. The loss of her father and their home deeply affected young Myrna; however, it also molded her into being the very tenacious and bold woman she would become. After visiting with cousins in New York with her sister one summer, she had so much fun that she chose to continue to spend the following summers with her New York family traveling to New York on her own. Myrna’s life changed when she attended a 4th of July church picnic in 1956, when she noticed a young man looking at her, only to see him dancing with another girl. It wasn’t until the brothers stood next to each other that she realized Jim had an identical twin brother, John, who was at the picnic visiting with his then girlfriend. Myrna left quite an impression on Jim, who was relocating to Minnesota with his brother to enter the pioneering computer field. Uncle Sam stepped in and enrolled Jim and John in a 4 year all-expense paid overseas tour with the Army, but that did not stop him from forgetting the beautiful brunette he met at the picnic. He regularly wrote her all 4 years of his deployment. Upon his return, he quickly got back in touch with her. Within a few months they were engaged and by September they were happily married. Not too long after they were married what she initially thought was a stomach bug, turned out to be their first born, George. Two years later Maria kept Myrna & Jim waiting and decided to make her entrance shortly after Jim left for school in Massachusetts. Her friend Irene rushed her to the hospital only for Maria to keep her waiting again until 1AM to make her entrance into the world. A year later a surprise came along in the form of Renee. Mom was certain she was having a boy. What was supposed to be a romantic anniversary day, turned out to be a rush to the hospital with the baby on the way. Myrna was in the delivery room when the doctor and nurses decided she wasn’t ready to have the baby and went off to lunch – despite mom insisting the baby was coming. Myrna brought her surprise daughter, Renee, into the world on her own. Instead of a tie that year, Jim got a baby daughter for that anniversary. Myrna and Jim raised the kids together including changing diapers and feedings. Myrna held down the fort with the three kids, while Jim worked full time and went to computer school part time. When Jim’s work on the reconnaissance ships for the Apollo Space program was moving to San Diego, they chose to stay on the east coast and remain close to family. Jim got a job in Washington DC with the Department of the Navy and secured an apartment for the family in Virginia, while Myrna stayed behind to take care of the sale of the house. She initially accepted a contract with a church. When another offer came, which was higher, she could not bring herself to turn down the church – even when the other buyer kept raising his price! (Myrna said she could not go against a church and God.) Myrna and Jim made a home for the family in their Virginia apartment (putting up a paper “fireplace and chimney” for the kids when Christmas came since the apartment did not have a real fire place). When they moved the family to their forever home in Silver Spring, Maryland she went to work decorating the house with her loving touches. She got hooked on shopping for antique frames, thanks to cousin Claire Demas. When Myrna found out how much it cost to buy pictures for the frames, she decided to take up painting and fill the frames herself. (One of her favorite paintings she did was the violin with the envelop from dad’s first letter to her attached.) She and Jim loved working on the house and gardens and socializing with her neighbors (who would become longtime cherished friends). She enjoyed teaching Sunday School, being a part of the neighborhood “Home Maker’s” group; being on the neighborhood newsletter committee; going on a number of school field trips with the kids, being a den mother for the cub scouts (at least for the year George wanted to be a cub scout); and then for the girl scouts (even arranging a greeting card drive to pay for the troupe’s train outing to Harper’s Ferry). She was known for her memorable birthday cakes for the kids – whether it was a rocket ship, a doll cake, or cupcakes in ice cream cones.

Myrna entered the work force when the kids got older. At first Jim was not so thrilled, but never to hold her back, he supported her and frequently would make dinner when he got home from work before she did. Myrna joined the Montgomery County Dept of Transportation a few years later and remained there until she retired in 1998. She and Jim saw two children marry and became “Yiayia and Papou” with two grandsons and five granddaughters. (She said she and Jim will work on a husband for Maria from heaven). They enjoyed traveling to Greece, Israel, Turkey, and Spain and made many new friends on the way. She volunteered at NIH making dinners for families staying with their sick child at the hospital. When Jim’s health started to decline, she looked after him even when her own mobility became limited. She maintained a thorough tracking schedule of his medications and vitals for his cardiologist (who said Jim’s continued health was largely due to Myrna’s care).

When Jim passed in March 2017, she keenly felt his absence. She chose to stay at the house she and Jim raised their family (where she still felt his presence) in spite of her children inviting her to move in with them. She was blessed with meeting her grandchildren’s wonderful spouses and future spouses and was overjoyed at becoming a “great Yiayia” with 4 great granddaughters and two great grandsons. (She did not get a chance to meet her third great grandson, who is due any day now, but you know she will be looking over him when he makes his entrance.) She was a devoted wife, loving mother, and dear friend. She had a generous heart was a compassionate soul. She chose to leave us on her terms, surrounded by love and fell asleep to the Lord in peace. Myrna is now reunited with her beloved Jim and together they will continue to look after their family from their place in Heaven with the Lord. May their memories be eternal.