Nicholas Vasilios “Nick” Gavrelos fell asleep in Christ on January 6, 2009 surrounded by his loving family, after fighting a courageous six year battle with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS).
Nick was the only child of Vasilios and Maria (Panagakis) Gavrelos, and was preceded in death by them. Nick was born in Skopi (Bedeni), Tripolis Greece on May 20, 1925. From the time Nick was a young boy, war ravaged his country. The Nazi Germans invaded his village in 1942 and used his home as one of their headquarters until 1944. In 1948, Nick was drafted into the Greek Army and served during the height of the Communist-led revolt against the Greek government. He served honorably for two years and was recognized for his bravery and valor during numerous altercations high in the mountains of Greece, including the battles Lillieas, Makrakomis, and Sperhiodos. After the defeat of the communists he served as a military police officer helping to restore order back to Greece. He reflected great credit upon himself and his country.
On January 6, 1951, six months after his discharge from the military, he arrived in the United States with ten dollars in his pocket. He soon found himself gainfully employed at his uncles’ restaurants; The Tip Top Café and The Beaumont Café, and living at the YMCA in downtown Beaumont.
Nick and his first cousin Gus Davros, and their two uncles; John and Jim Gavrelos, opened the J&J Steakhouse in 1953, which became a fifty-year Beaumont tradition. He received his U.S. Citizenship on December 6, 1956, and the opening of the J&J Motel soon followed in 1967. Nick traveled to Greece in 1960 where he met his wife Letsa Kapsimalis. They were married in Greece and soon returned to Beaumont where they lived, worked and raised their family. Nick retired in 2002 after serving the Beaumont community for over fifty years.
Nick is survived by Letsa Gavrelos, his loving wife of forty-eight years; his three children; daughter, Mary Gregory and her husband Greg of Missouri City; son, John Gavrelos and his wife Christine of Beaumont; daughter, Billie Tucker and her husband Carl of Beaumont; his nine grandchildren, Stephanie and Eleni Gregory, Katherine, Ahna, Paige, Nicholette, and William Gavrelos, and Rebekah and Caroline Tucker.
A Trisagion service will be held at St. Michaels Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church, 680 N. 15th Street in Beaumont on Thursday, January 8, 2009 at 7:00 p.m. with the gathering beginning at 5:00 p.m. Funeral services will be held on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. all under the direction of Broussard’s, 1605 N. Major in Beaumont. Interment will immediately follow at Forest Lawn Memorial Park with Pete Gavrel of Houston, Harry Davros of Dallas, Stavros Megas of Nederland, Stavros Megas of Lumberton Chris Megas of Nederland, and Johnny Gavrel of Houston serving as pall bearers.
The family would like to thank Dr. Nathaniel Alford and Harbor Hospice for their help, kindness, and compassion. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Michaels Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church Building Fund, 680 N. 15th Street, Beaumont, Texas 77701 and or to the Sunday School program.
