Wassef Habib Elsakr

ELSAKR, Wassef Habib, 91, of Richmond, Virginia, died peacefully on February 24, 2014. Wassef was born in Egypt on August 15, 1922. He was a retired teacher and a member of Third Presbyterian Church in Richmond. He was preceded in death by his mother, Helana Youssef; his father, Habib Elsakr; and his brothers, Sami Elsakr, Thabet Elsakr, and Waheeba Elsakr. He is survived by his wife of 66 years Folla Zaki Elsakr; his nine children, Fiby Makar (Onsy) of Florida, Fadia Zaki (Emil) of Egypt, Mary Gebrael (Sameer) of Virginia, Ekhlas Shokralla (Moheb) of Egypt, Youssef Elsakr (Inas) of Florida, Mervat Ghaly (Maged) of Virginia, Ashraf Elsakr (Safaa) of Virginia, Raif Elsakr (Susie)of Tennessee, Nassef Elsakr (Maggie) of Virginia; his nineteen grandchildren, Vivian Girgis (George) of North Carolina, Joey Makar of Florida, Anne Zaki (Najji) of Egypt, Ernest Menes (Heidy) of Eygpt, Johnny Gebrael of Kansas, Harvy Gebrael of Arizona, Moheb Shokralla of Virginia, Dina Shokralla of Texas, Jessica Wassef of Florida, Christina Wassef of Florida, Marina Ghaly of Virginia, Mark Ghaly of Virginia, Sandra Elsakr of Virginia, Sara Elsakr of Virginia, Samuel Elsakr of Virginia, Carol Elsakr of Tennessee, Andrew Elsakr of Tennessee, Daniel Elsakr of Virginia, Mandy Elsakr of Virginia; and his six great-grandsons, Jashua Girgis of North Carolina, Zack Girgis of North Carolina, Jonathan Umran of Egypt, Sebestian Umran of Egypt, Emmanuel Umran of Egypt, and Alex Umran of Egypt. Funeral services will be held 11 a.m. Sunday (today) at the Huguenot Chapel of Woody Funeral Home, 1020 Huguenot Road, Midlothian, Virginia. Interment to follow at Mount Vernon Memorial Park in Glen Allen. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to El Nikhela Presbyterian Church in Assiut, Egypt in care of Christian Caring For Egypt Inc., P.O. Box 8183, Paramus, N.J. 07653-8183. Online condolences to WoodyFuneralHomeHuguenot.com.

Mr. Wassef Elsakr was born on August 15, 1922 to Helana Youssef and Habib Elsakr in Elnikhela , Assuit, Egypt where a street still carries the family name. He first saw his future bride, Folla Zaki Wanis while singing in the choir at Shoubra El Sharkeya Church and they got married in July 1948. He graduated from Ain Shams University with a degree in agricultural science. He started his long career at the Ministry of Education in Egypt where he first taught high school students and was later promoted to several administrative positions including High School Superintendent. He studied at Cairo Evangelical Seminary in Egypt where he graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Divinity in 1982 at the age of 60. He was an active elder at Heliopolis Presbyterian Church since 1977. After retiring from the ministry of education he also enjoyed working in the family clothing manufacturing business. He then moved to the USA where he opened the way for his children to prosper. Most importantly, Mr.and Mrs. Elsakr founded the Arabic Evangelical Church in Richmond, VA in 1990. Whether in Egypt or the USA, at home, work or church, he always showed the love of Christ and was a real blessing to all. He led a godly life reflecting Christ Righteousness and Peace. He found his true enjoyment in prayer and reading The Bible and in attending church and spiritual meetings. He is greatly missed by his loving wife, 9 children and their spouses, 19 grandchildren (and 3 spouses) and 6 great grandchildren in addition to his extended family.