John George Gatsis went to heaven on May 12, 2020, due to natural causes. His parents, the late George and Irene (nee Mouhelis) Gatsis, married after they each lost spouses in the 1918 flu pandemic, and John made his transition in the middle of the 2020 pandemic. John outlived his best friend and loving wife Mary (nee Seletos) of 61 years and is survived by his beloved children: Renee Gatsis, Karen (Kimball) Gatsis Anderson, Diane Gatsis Havinga, and George (Wanda) Gatsis. Cherished grandchildren: Alexis (Ray) Lavko, Steve (Emily) Layton, Jason, Maria, and Elisabeth Havinga, Melissa and Sophia Anderson and Robert Kinnicutt. Cherished great-grandsons: Ray and Theo Lavko, and three generations of loving nieces and nephews.
John survived his dear siblings: Peter (Marie) Karr, Tessie (Charles) Gardner, and Mary S. Gatsis; his dear sisters and brothers-in-laws: Nikki (John) Efantis, Georgia (Peter) Zaverdas, Stella (Nick) Golemis, and Tom (Martha) Seletos. And cherished niece Kelli (Peter) Emery and nephew Jim Gardner.
John was a second lieutenant in the Army Air Force and served as a navigator in WW2 on a B-24, which flew bombing missions over Germany. After the war, he graduated from IIT and got a job at UOP, where he worked as a chemist most of his life, a job he loved.
St John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church in Des Plaines was his spiritual home. There, he and his wife Mary were active parishioners. As the beloved patriarch and spiritual father of a large, extended, mostly Greek family, he will be sorely missed.
Funeral and Interment services were privately held. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to WINGS Program, P.O. Box 29309, Chicago, IL 60629, or online at https://wingsprogram.com, or your local food pantry.
May His Memory Be Eternal.
Hey Diane I saw that your Dad recently passed away and just wanted to give you my condolences…Not sure if you remember me but our parents were friends at St. Johns and if I’m correct we went to ISU together…Well sorry for your loss and hope you are doing well! Best wishes, Steve.