Nelly C. Caranicas

Nelly Caranicas, passed away peacefully of natural causes in her sleep on April 26, 2014, just two-and-a-half weeks short of her 99th birthday. She died in her apartment at the Watergate in Washington, DC, where she had been living since 1966.Nelly Caranicas was born Nelly Odoni in Xanthi, northern Greece, on May 13, 1915. Her parents were natives of Italy, and her father ran an international trading business. They raised six children, all boys except for Nelly, the fifth-born.She was educated in Catholic schools in Athens and in 1939 married Costa P. Caranicas, an economist and professor. When WWII broke out, Mussolini invaded Greece and Nelly's parents, who were Italian, were forced to flee to Italy. Nelly stayed behind in Greece with her husband. During the war she bore three children, Maria (who died of whooping cough soon after childbirth), Peter and Paul.Just after the war Costa was assigned by the Greek government to help form the United Nations in Lake Success, New York. After a short period, Nelly and her two sons followed him to the United States, first settling on Long Island, then moving to the Washington DC area.Over the next decades Costa Caranicas worked at various posts representing the Greek government at the UN, the Greek Embassy in Washington DC, and the International Monetary Fund. The diplomatic couple traveled widely over the years to various conferences and missions and met many heads of state, including U.S. presidents Dwight Eisenhower, Lyndon Johnson, John F. Kennedy and George H.W. Bush.After spending many years living in Chevy Chase, Maryland, the couple were among the first to move into the Watergate complex, before it became a household word.Nelly Caranicas is survived by sons Peter Caranicas, of Culver City, Calif., and Paul Caranicas, of Jersey City, N.J., and by two grandchildren, Kendrick Caranicas of Los Angeles, and Devon Caranicas of London.A memorial service will be held at Joseph Gawler's Sons funeral home, 5130 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington, DC, on Saturday, May 3, 2014, at 10 a.m. - Arrangements under the direction of Joseph Gawler's Sons LLC, Washington, DC.