The Rev. George J. Bacopulos, 77, of Keene, N.H., formerly of Decatur, died Wednesday (May 12, 1999) in his home following a lengthy illness.
The Rev. Bacopulos was born Dec. 25, 1921, in Decatur, the son of John and Agnes Bacopulos. He attended Decatur Schools graduating from Decatur High School in 1939. He then entered the Greek Orthodox Seminary in Pomfret, N.Y., but left the seminary despite a deferment, to fight in World War II. He served in the European Theater of Operations, landing on Omaha Beach with the 29th Infantry on D-Day and later participated in the Battle of the Bulge. He received two Purple Hearts, five Battle Stars and the Bronze Star. He returned to the seminary after the war and graduated from Holy Cross Greek Orthodo Theological School in 1952. The Rev. Bacopulos served as Assistant Dean of the Annunciation Cathedral of Boston and then as Dean. He then became Pastor of Sts. Constantine and Helen in Detroit, Mich., before returning to the archdiocese to serve as director of Inter-Church Relations in New York in 1960. He became Chancellor of the Archdiocese from 1964 until his retirement in 1986.
He traveled extensively throughout the world including the Far East and Vietnam during the war years. He was an active member of the general board of the World Council of Churches, including the Civil Rights Committee. In 1965 he joined the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in the civil rights march in Selma, Ala. He also served with the Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas and attended the third assembly of the World Council of Churches in Delhi, India in 1961 as a delegate of the Ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople.
Surviving are his wife, Evelyn of 53 years; sons, John G. and Christo Bacopulos, both of Toronto, Ontario, Canada; daughters, Dorothy Sophocles of Weston, Mass.; Maria Olsen of Highlands Ranch, Colo.; sister, Cleo Barrett of Hudson; 15 grandchildren; one great-grandchild.
He was preceded in death by his sister, Genevieve Bacopulos Malfas.
The Rev. Bacopulos was, above all, a modest man who performed his duties quietly and without fanfare, for though he reached the highest post that the Greek Orthodox Church permits a married clergyman, this tall, distinguished priest was at all times humble and unassuming.
Decatur, IL Herald & Review May 23, 1999
The Rev. Bacopulos was born Dec. 25, 1921, in Decatur, the son of John and Agnes Bacopulos. He attended Decatur Schools graduating from Decatur High School in 1939. He then entered the Greek Orthodox Seminary in Pomfret, N.Y., but left the seminary despite a deferment, to fight in World War II. He served in the European Theater of Operations, landing on Omaha Beach with the 29th Infantry on D-Day and later participated in the Battle of the Bulge. He received two Purple Hearts, five Battle Stars and the Bronze Star. He returned to the seminary after the war and graduated from Holy Cross Greek Orthodo Theological School in 1952. The Rev. Bacopulos served as Assistant Dean of the Annunciation Cathedral of Boston and then as Dean. He then became Pastor of Sts. Constantine and Helen in Detroit, Mich., before returning to the archdiocese to serve as director of Inter-Church Relations in New York in 1960. He became Chancellor of the Archdiocese from 1964 until his retirement in 1986.
He traveled extensively throughout the world including the Far East and Vietnam during the war years. He was an active member of the general board of the World Council of Churches, including the Civil Rights Committee. In 1965 he joined the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in the civil rights march in Selma, Ala. He also served with the Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas and attended the third assembly of the World Council of Churches in Delhi, India in 1961 as a delegate of the Ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople.
Surviving are his wife, Evelyn of 53 years; sons, John G. and Christo Bacopulos, both of Toronto, Ontario, Canada; daughters, Dorothy Sophocles of Weston, Mass.; Maria Olsen of Highlands Ranch, Colo.; sister, Cleo Barrett of Hudson; 15 grandchildren; one great-grandchild.
He was preceded in death by his sister, Genevieve Bacopulos Malfas.
The Rev. Bacopulos was, above all, a modest man who performed his duties quietly and without fanfare, for though he reached the highest post that the Greek Orthodox Church permits a married clergyman, this tall, distinguished priest was at all times humble and unassuming.
Decatur, IL Herald & Review May 23, 1999
The Rev. George J. Bacopulos, 77, of Keene, N.H., formerly of Decatur, died Wednesday (May 12, 1999) in his home following a lengthy illness.
The Rev. Bacopulos was born Dec. 25, 1921, in Decatur, the son of John and Agnes Bacopulos. He attended Decatur Schools graduating from Decatur High School in 1939. He then entered the Greek Orthodox Seminary in Pomfret, N.Y., but left the seminary despite a deferment, to fight in World War II. He served in the European Theater of Operations, landing on Omaha Beach with the 29th Infantry on D-Day and later participated in the Battle of the Bulge. He received two Purple Hearts, five Battle Stars and the Bronze Star. He returned to the seminary after the war and graduated from Holy Cross Greek Orthodo Theological School in 1952. The Rev. Bacopulos served as Assistant Dean of the Annunciation Cathedral of Boston and then as Dean. He then became Pastor of Sts. Constantine and Helen in Detroit, Mich., before returning to the archdiocese to serve as director of Inter-Church Relations in New York in 1960. He became Chancellor of the Archdiocese from 1964 until his retirement in 1986.
He traveled extensively throughout the world including the Far East and Vietnam during the war years. He was an active member of the general board of the World Council of Churches, including the Civil Rights Committee. In 1965 he joined the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in the civil rights march in Selma, Ala. He also served with the Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas and attended the third assembly of the World Council of Churches in Delhi, India in 1961 as a delegate of the Ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople.
Surviving are his wife, Evelyn of 53 years; sons, John G. and Christo Bacopulos, both of Toronto, Ontario, Canada; daughters, Dorothy Sophocles of Weston, Mass.; Maria Olsen of Highlands Ranch, Colo.; sister, Cleo Barrett of Hudson; 15 grandchildren; one great-grandchild.
He was preceded in death by his sister, Genevieve Bacopulos Malfas.
The Rev. Bacopulos was, above all, a modest man who performed his duties quietly and without fanfare, for though he reached the highest post that the Greek Orthodox Church permits a married clergyman, this tall, distinguished priest was at all times humble and unassuming.
Decatur, IL Herald & Review May 23, 1999
The Rev. Bacopulos was born Dec. 25, 1921, in Decatur, the son of John and Agnes Bacopulos. He attended Decatur Schools graduating from Decatur High School in 1939. He then entered the Greek Orthodox Seminary in Pomfret, N.Y., but left the seminary despite a deferment, to fight in World War II. He served in the European Theater of Operations, landing on Omaha Beach with the 29th Infantry on D-Day and later participated in the Battle of the Bulge. He received two Purple Hearts, five Battle Stars and the Bronze Star. He returned to the seminary after the war and graduated from Holy Cross Greek Orthodo Theological School in 1952. The Rev. Bacopulos served as Assistant Dean of the Annunciation Cathedral of Boston and then as Dean. He then became Pastor of Sts. Constantine and Helen in Detroit, Mich., before returning to the archdiocese to serve as director of Inter-Church Relations in New York in 1960. He became Chancellor of the Archdiocese from 1964 until his retirement in 1986.
He traveled extensively throughout the world including the Far East and Vietnam during the war years. He was an active member of the general board of the World Council of Churches, including the Civil Rights Committee. In 1965 he joined the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in the civil rights march in Selma, Ala. He also served with the Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas and attended the third assembly of the World Council of Churches in Delhi, India in 1961 as a delegate of the Ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople.
Surviving are his wife, Evelyn of 53 years; sons, John G. and Christo Bacopulos, both of Toronto, Ontario, Canada; daughters, Dorothy Sophocles of Weston, Mass.; Maria Olsen of Highlands Ranch, Colo.; sister, Cleo Barrett of Hudson; 15 grandchildren; one great-grandchild.
He was preceded in death by his sister, Genevieve Bacopulos Malfas.
The Rev. Bacopulos was, above all, a modest man who performed his duties quietly and without fanfare, for though he reached the highest post that the Greek Orthodox Church permits a married clergyman, this tall, distinguished priest was at all times humble and unassuming.
Decatur, IL Herald & Review May 23, 1999
Family Members
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Advertisement
