Efstratios Makris

Efstratios Makris passed away on 3/7/24 at 69 years old.

He was known as “Charlie” to many and “Strati” to others. Regardless of his nickname, he always greeted everyone with an infectious smile.

He was born in Mesagro, Mytilini, Lesvos on August 25, 1954. He was the son of Eleftherios and Eirini Makris and a younger brother to Damian Makris. At the age of 16, Efstratios and his family emigrated from Greece to Delaware and eventually found their home in New Jersey.

His initial career in the food industry started as a bus boy at a local diner. With a strong work ethic and ambition, he propelled his career forward to become the owner of The New Bayonne Diner. Efstratios poured over 35 years of his life working tirelessly to provide for his family. He made many friends along the way, as he was a gregarious man with a contagious laugh.

He married the love of his life, Ekaterini in May of 1974. Their respect and deep love helped grow their family with the addition of their two children, Renique and Tina. Their 50th anniversary would have been this spring. They walked through this life sharing their joys with those around them.

Tragedy struck early spring of 1993, when Efstratios was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). While this disease affected his body, it did not impact his spirit. He was a strong fighter and gave everything to those he loved. He never let his MS get in the way of living his life to the fullest.

Efstratios’ overwhelming generosity was what made him so unique, and his beloved daughters looked up to him especially for this ever so giving personality of his. He would give you the skin off his back if he could. He lifted up everyone around him and those feelings and memories are what is cherished most for his family and friends. He lived to give.

Efstratios loved sports, hunting, and animals. You would always find him watching a Giant’s game, cleaning his hunting weapons, or exploring his hobbies with others. Through the years he had enjoyed his pet birds, ducks, and fish. However, his favorite thing in life was to be on the beach. When asked what his best memory was, he recalled the summers spent at the beach with his parents and brother in Lesvos. He shared his love of the ocean with his wife, daughters, and grandchildren by spending all of his vacations in Greece, the Jersey shore, and his favorite island of Aruba.

The last months of his life, Efstratios chose to remain at home with his loved ones which became his heartbeat. He is survived by his wife Ekaterini Makris, his daughters Renique Christolias and Tina Slattery, their husbands Dr. George Christolias and Brian Slattery, and his 5 granddaughters Chloe, Alexa, Andriana, Bianca, and Katerina.

The funeral will be held on Monday, March 11th at St. Athanasios Greek Orthodox Church at 51 Paramus Road in Paramus, NJ 07652. The viewing will be at 10:00AM and the church service will begin directly after at 11:00AM.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations to St. Athanasios Greek Orthodox Church in honor of Efstratios.