Helen Johns

On October 27, 2017 Helen Johns passed away. She was born on February 4, 1925 to Pantelis and Stergoula Karpathiou Johns. Helen was an active member of the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and a dedicated Sunday School teacher since 1956, when the church was built. Prior to teaching at St. Nicholas, she was a member and Sunday School teacher at the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral. When she was at St. Nicholas, Helen along with a dear friend Kitty Flezanis were instrumental in writing a curriculum for the Sunday School which was highly acclaimed. She was also a member of the St. Nicholas Ladies Philoptochos and the St. Nicholas Diamond Senior Group. She was also involved with the Sister Cities Organization, was president and founder of the Greektown Community and Development Corp., and the chairman of the Greek Festival. Helen was a very caring activist for the community of St. Nicholas. She was known by some as the mayor of Highlandtown (now Greektown). She was a kind, caring, and very respected person. She worked for General Motors for thirty years. She loved anything Spanish, especially Tio Pepe’s. She was a Godmother to many. She was a cherished mentor to her Godchildren; Col John E. Gavrilis; Kristyn Gavrilis-Oliphant, and Little Yianni Gavrilis Oliphant.

She was the beloved daughter of the late Pantelis and Stergoula Karpathiou Johns; devoted sister of the late Basil and John Johns; loving aunt of Garrison Johns and his wife Sherri, and the late Curtis Johns and his wife Tracey; great-aunt of Raymond Johns and family, and Curtis Johns, Jr. and family; dear sister-in-law of Aspasia Johns; cherished Godmother of Col. John E. Gavrilis, Kristyn Gavrilis-Oliphant, "Little Yianni" Oliphant, Antigoni Georgas, Kosta Mastrogiannis, Karen Yospe, and Sharon Stanley. She is survived by her kind and caring caregivers Debbie Powell and Janice Washington, as well as many friends in Baltimore, along with relatives in the village of Asklepios, Greece.

Relatives and friends are invited to visit at Charles S. Zeiler and Son Inc., 6224 Eastern Ave. Baltimore, MD 21224 on Thursday from 5-8 PM, where a Trisagion service will be held at 7PM. A Funeral Service will be held on Friday at 11:00 AM at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church. Interment will follow at the Greek Orthodox Cemetery. Those who wish may make memorial contributions to St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, 520 Ponca St. Baltimore, MD 21224. Online tributes may be left at www.charlesszeiler.com.