Christopher Stavrou

STAVROU, Christopher died peacefully at age 97 on June 26th in New York City, surrounded by his loving family. He was a linguist, lexicographer, and professor of Romance languages, ultimately at Upsala College. He managed the Park Lane Theater in Palisades Park, NJ for 3 decades, leaving to earn an MA at Columbia (’58) and a PhD at the University of Pennsylvania (’65). His wife, Virginia, nee Kapsimalis, died in 1980. He is survived by three children, Helen (married to Thomas F. Grannell), Christopher C. (m. Joanne Walsh), Alexandra (m. Christopher Wilson), and grandchildren Nikolaos, Timotheos, Alexander, Panagiotes, and Fiona. Friends may call from 2pm with service at 6:30pm, Sunday, July 10, at the Andrett Funeral Home, 353 Second Ave., New York City. Contributions may be sent to the Columbia University GSAS Annual Fund.

THE RECORD/HERALD NEWS

STAVROU Christopher, aged 97, long time Palisades Park resident, died peacefully on June 26, 2011, surrounded bv his family. His beloved wife, Virginia (nee Panagiota Kapsimalis) died in 1980. Chris was the last survivor of nine children of Arete and Polykarpos Stavrou. Known to generations of local residents as the Manager of the Park Lane Theatre, Chris was also a Professor of Romance Languages and Linguistics at St. Joseph's and Upsala Colleges. An intellectually gifted young boy with a special interest in languages, Chris truly loved learning and read through dictionaries and encyclopedias for recreation. However, he couldn't attend college because of the Depression and worked as a movie theatre usher to support his large family. In 1936, Chris became manager of the Park Lane Theatre in Palisades Park. He loved recalling the vaudeville-type shows he and other townspeople would present on stage in the early days, and how years later, he persuaded the theatre owners to drop the admission price to a dollar, putting the PLT on the map and in the news! He would later share the job with his wife, Virginia, retiring in 1977. On his own, Chris had taught himself several languages. In 1942 he took a continuing education class in Portuguese at Columbia University and was invited by the instructor to teach a night course at NYU. Chris then went on to write and publish a book on Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation. In the 50's, attending only his second college level class ever, Chris impressed his teachers yet again, and was admitted to the Masters Program at Columbia University without having earned a Bachelor's Degree, an unusual honor. His articles on linguistics and phonology were already being published in scholarly journals. In 1965, after years of part-time schooling Chris was awarded his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania and was able to fulfill his lifelong dream of teaching in college. He also spent several years on the monumental pre-computer task of being Senior Editor of the Bantam-Scribner English Dictionary(1977), writing each definition on a separate index card(!) for later compilation. At heart, Chris was a very compassionate man who believed strongly that every human being was equally worthy. He wrote many eloquent letters to editors of magazines and newspapers in support of civil rights, social justice and help for those on society's bottom rungs. His kindness and generosity towards those in need were entirely without prejudice. In 1984, Chris was thrilled to finally become a "Papou" with the birth of his first grandchild. By then a widower, he bused into Manhattan every day for three years to take care of his baby grandson, putting family first, as always. Chris lived a long full life with very many interests, great humor and lots of love and respect. He leaves behind his children Alexandra (Chris Wilson) of Ridgefield, Helen (Tom Grannell) of NYC, and Christopher (Joanne) of Riverside, CT; his grandchildren Nikolaos, Timotheos, Alexander, Panagiotes and Fiona. and a large extended family. There will be visitation on Sunday, July 10 at Andrett's Funeral Home, 353 Second Avenue, NYC from 2-7 PM, with a Service at 6:30 PM