Lefter Kalevicoglu

After the Army, he then moved to Canada in 1952 where he worked as auto mechanic. He eventually met his beautiful wife, Marie, in 1956 and married her in 1958. OF course, we all know he renamed her " Donald Duck", which remained her name for the rest of their years together.

They the decided to move their lives to the United States in 1959 where they went with little in their pockets, but big dreams in their hearts. They started out in a hotel, then an apartment, and soon bought their own home in Arleta, California. They worked hard to become citizens of the U.S. by following all the rules of having a sponsor, a certain sum of money in their pocket, and never applying for assistance. He was very proud of being an American citizen and took it very seriously

Their family of two began to grow in 1959 when their first son, Perry, was born Richard soon followed in 1962, with Paul following in 1966. Their family was complete, and they enjoyed time together traveling and camping. Two of his favorite day trips were going out to Wrightwood or to Ventura Beach and spending the day.

Lefter worked as an auto mechanic and eventually moved on to work at Budweiser with his son Perry. They bought a home in Lake Elizabeth where he would go stay with Marie on weekends and would eventually move to when he fully retired and be back full-time with Marie. His two sons, Richard and Perry, also decided to join them by moving to Lake Elizabeth. His son Paul moved to Oregon where he started a life with his wife, Eileen.

They enjoyed their retirement together taking long walks and enjoying being out of the city. They took many trips to Greece, Turkey, Canada, Alaska, and all over Europe. They enjoyed spending lots of time with friends and had great times with them.

In 2000, Lefter became a grandpa for the first time when Alec Dimitri was born, or as he called him "Lulu" until Alec outgrew that name and became Alexander the Great. In 2001, his second grandchild was born, Ailis Renee, or as he called her Octoleba. He adored his playing board games, coloring, and playing school with his very strict teacher Ailis.

I think the thing all of us will miss most of Lefter is his sense of humor. He loved to joke, and he never called anybody by their real name. He made up nicknames for everyone, and that's what he would call them. He would always greet you by squeezing your cheeks. He loved to tease little kids, especially while in church.

One thing we know for sure is that Lefter wanted us to celebrate his life when he was gone, not be somber. He wanted us to reach for the stars and get everything we could out of life. Travel and just enjoy the beautiful life that God granted us. So for now, we say good-bye, but we will one day be with him again. God Bless you, Lefter. You will be missed!!

Arrangements under the direction of Joshua Memorial Park Mortuary, Lancaster, CA.