Sam Nicholas Karageorge

Stamatios Nicholas Karageorge, age 93, passed away peacefully on October 10th after a brief hospital stay and being diagnosed with lung cancer in September. Stam, or Sam as he was often called, was born in Mt. Morris, Michigan on July 7, 1931. His mother, Maria, and father, Nicholas, met and married in their homeland of Greece. After living in both Michigan and in Greece, they ultimately decided to raise Stam and his sister Jesse in Michigan.

Stam joined the Navy and served in the Korean War. He then met his love, Shirley Thom, in 1955. They married in 1959 in Michigan, and eventually moved to Sylvania, Ohio with their three children. Stam owned and managed cemeteries for over 30 years; he retired in 1996. In 1998, Stam and Shirley moved to Lewis Center, Ohio where they could be closer to family. Stam decided to “un-retire” that same year and went to work for Jay Schoedinger where he met many wonderful people and truly enjoyed the work.

Stam and Shirley settled in Dublin, Ohio in 2018 where they lived happily on their own until his passing. Stam enjoyed meeting people and loved a party of any kind. We were all lucky to celebrate his 93rd birthday in July with a big party. For fun, Stam spent time working out at the Dublin Rec Center as well as taking walks in their neighborhood with Shirley; they would frequently stop to talk with their “wonderful” neighbors. Stam was a music lover and car enthusiast. He owned several sports cars in his younger days.

Stam was a member of the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, and loved anything that reminded him of Greece, especially Pavlo Simtikidis’s music. He was lucky to live 93 years with much happiness, good health, and wonderful family and friends. In his final days, he especially felt the love of those friends and neighbors as many stopped by frequently to check on him and Shirley.

Stam is survived by his loving wife of 65 years, Shirley, and their three children: Lisa McBride (Dillon/Kali-Bennett & Demi-Connor/Heather, and Darby), Nicole & Tim Tullis (Tatum, Talia, Griffin), and Chris & Aimee Karageorge (Nicholas, Xander, and Emerson). He loved seeing his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren, and often said his family was the reason he lived so long.

A visitation will be on Wednesday, October 16, 2024, from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm (noon) at Schoedinger Dublin, 5980 Perimeter Drive Dublin, Ohio, 43017. His funeral service will be held immediately following at 12:00 pm. A Trisagion Service and interment will be held at Kingwood Memorial Park at 2:00 pm, 8230 Columbus Pike, Lewis Center, Ohio 43035.

Αἰωνία ἡ μνήμη. May his memory be eternal.