You Are What You Where When

Chris Zervas uses these simple words give meaning to how our beliefs and culture have made us what we are today.

Chris (Christos) Anastasiou Zervas was born in Prosimni, Argolidos, in the Greek Peloponnese. His birthdate varies depending on the document used. Greek hometown records show two dates, January 11 and February 11, 1956, and his passport has February 12, so he uses February 11, 1956. The name Zervas may have originated in Soulio, Epirus, Greece, where there was a captain named Zervas who was ousted by the Turks or Albanians and came to the Peloponnese.

Using his scientific and computer skills, Chris has traced his family roots in his horio (village) as far back as mid to late 1700s. This finding results from his exhaustive compilation of every Greek name he encounters. The name is then researched, cross checked and added to a family tree which has over 110,000 names. Given any Greek name, he can probably discern the person’s relationships in great detail. He is proud of his Greek village where the Mycenae culture existed as early as 4000 BC. Roman baths dating back 2200 years, and paleothithic artifacts 58,000 BC have been found in excavations in a nearby cave. Ancient potteries are readily discovered on the ground throughout the village.

Left to Right: Prosimni, 1935, The Church of St. George in Prosimni, built around 12th century, Prosimni, 2016.

The Family Background

*Great Grandparents Georgios Demetriou Roumbos and Anastasia (nee Trikas), circa 1910*

Anastasios (Tom) Zervas (1926-1974) was one of seven children born to Chris and Sophia (nee Skouras). Only three survived past two years old. One aunt Georgia Papasotiriou married to Demetrios Papasotiriou, lives in Bellingham, Washington, and the other aunt, Konstantina Korilis married to Andrianos Korilis from Midea Argolidos, passed away last year. Chris did not see his father until he was seven years old as his father left Greece when Chris was just nine months old.

*Konstantina, Georgia, Sophia, Christos, Anastasios Zervas 1952*

Tom’s uncle, Tom Skouras, passed through Ellis Island in 1910 at the age of 15, worked on the railroad across the United States and settled in Bellingham. Skouras’ intent was to earn money and send it back to Greece for his sister’s dowries, and return himself. Although he financially supported his family throughout his life, he never returned to the village. Tom remained in Bellingham and established the Bellingham Fish Company. He did bring Chris’s father, Tom, to Bellingham in December of 1956 leaving his wife, Anastasia, Chris and his older sister, Sophia, in the village.

*Maternal grandparents Georgios Theodorou Sotiriou and Panagoula (nee Roumbos),circa 1960s.*

In Bellingham, Tom worked fileting fish at the Dahl Sea Food company. He had become a United States citizen and thus had given up his Greek citizenship. When he returned to Greece in 1962, Tom purchased several parcels of land and worked as a farmer. He did not like the farming life and in 1964, planned to return to Bellingham with his wife while the children remained in Prosimni with their grandparents. Anastasia declined and for three more years Tom was away from his family. Finally, he returned to Greece in 1967, for one year until he went back to Bellingham with Anastasia. Chris and his sister Sophia joined their parents in 1969.

*Anastasios Zervas taftotia (photo ID), 1944*

Chris’ mother, Anastasia (nee Sotiriou) was also born in Prosimni. Of her five siblings four remain, one sister Demetra Dimas in Chicago, one sister Katerina Zogalis in Sydney, Australia, one brother Demetrios Sotiriou in Bellingham and one brother Theodoros Sotiriou in Greece. The oldest sister Sophia passed away in the village in 2006. Life for Anastasia was very difficult, especially for the first years after Tom left for America.

*Front: Anastasios Zervas, Ioannis Sotiriou; Back Christos Virlas, Nikolaos Papaioannou, Demetrios Papasotiriou, 1949*

While her husband was working in Bellingham, she raised her two children by herself and worked on the family properties. Tobacco was the main crop and later there were over 1000 orange trees, apricot trees, 700 olive trees and artichokes. Chris remembers using his fingers to grip the olives from the branches as they fell onto blankets on the ground. They would then be put into bags, taken home to separate the leaves and twigs, then taken to a “crusher” to make the olive oil.

Chris’s Story

*Left to Right: Konstantina Zervas-Korilis, Sophia Tom, Chris and Anastasia*

Chris attended the first through sixth grades in Prosimni, applied and was accepted for high school in nearby Argos, Greece. It was a bus ride in the early morning and return trip to the village in the late afternoon. Chris stands much taller than his parents and relatives, probably a recessive gift from a maternal great grandfather who was well over six feet tall.

In 1969, he had finished first year of high school (gymnasion) when he and Sophia boarded a Sabena Airlines Boeing 707 and flew to Brussels, then on Air Canada to Toronto, Ontario, and Vancouver, British Columbia. During that trip, all he could say in English was “me no know English.” The Zervas family lived with their Uncle Tom Skouras for a year. Skouras had sold his fish company but was still making deliveries.

As an eighth grader in Bellingham, language was an obstacle, but Chris was a good math student and made friends as time went on. It was even more challenging for Anastasia who eventually began working at Bornsteins Sea Foods also fileting fish.

*Left to Right: Anastasia, Anastasios, Christos, Chris and Sophia, 1973*

The Greek community centered around St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Church to which Uncle Tom Skouras had generously contributed. However, the Church depended on a visiting priest from Vancouver until a permanent priest was assigned. Beyond that, Christmas, Easter and other celebrations brought the Zervas family together with other Greeks, particularly the Louie Lallas family and their daughter, Helen.

Education

Chris graduated from Bellingham High School in 1974 and had just begun college when a lump was discovered in his father’s chest. Seven weeks later Tom passed away. Anastasia became the main support for her children and continued working. At age 93, she still maintains her house in Bellingham home but now lives permanently in Seattle with Sophia. For the past 25-30 years she spent summers in Greece where the family still maintains the family home.

While in high school, Chris took some college calculus classes at Western Washington University (WWU). Back in high school he served as a student teacher in calculus. At WWU, he chose mathematics and computer science as his major studies and was thinking about a career teaching mathematics. His chemistry professor Dr Kriz suggested that Chris consider engineering and arranged an appointment at the University of Washington (UW). After a fruitful meeting with the chairman of the UW chemical engineering department, Chris transferred schools in the fall of 1975. Upon graduation in 1978 and with an interest in airplanes, he accepted an offer from and began his career with the Boeing Company.

Boeing

He was initially hired as a process engineer supporting the new Boeing 757 program in Renton, Washington, where changes from using aluminum to composite materials were underway. The new process involved the use of composite materials primarily Tedlar bonded on crushcore to manufacture the interior sidewall and ceiling panels. He subsequently worked for Boeing Electronics where research in Circuit boards, Assemblies, microelectronics are microchips were developed. He Assisted in the management of the research laboratory until 1989 when he returned to the commercial side of Boeing.

*Chris with colleagues at Boeing facility at Kennedy Space Center, 2015*

After a lengthy stint at Boeing Materials Technology managing research programs to replace regulated materials in the manufacturing and maintenance of Boeing products. Chris was also involved in the development and qualification of technologies to decontaminate civilian and military aircraft from different agents. This included returning aircraft back inro service during the Hoof and Mouth outbreak in Europe, SARS, Avian Flu, post 9-11 events and finally Covid. Chris finished his 41-year career at Boeing Environmental Health and Safety organization. During his last five years with the Company, Chris worked at an enterprise group supporting the design engineering groups across the enterprise to incorporate Environmental, Health and Safety (Ergonomics) features in the manufacturing and maintenance of all new platform designs.

Helen Discovers Chris

Helen (Eleni) Lallas’ family was close with the Zervas family (see FIRM, FAIR AND FRIENDLY). Helen was raised by first generation Greek parents who passed on their love of their Greek culture and traditions. When she travelled to Greece on her own for the first time as a young 20-year-old, she was wonderfully overwhelmed with meeting her father’s relatives and being completely immersed in the culture and language, which she admits was challenging as her Greek language skills were very limited. Though communication could be difficult at times she fell in love with her new found relatives.

As she is several years younger than Chris, they were never in school together and were just part of the Bellingham extended Greek family. Sophia, Chris’ sister was nouna (godmother) to a Lallas relative. Helen remembers being at Chris’ high school graduation party and other events where she saw him as “just another Greek boy.” In 1985 Chris returned from a trip with Tommy Rakus (see FROM THE HEART OF GREECE) and was invited to a birthday party where Helen was also present.

The next morning Chris received a call from Helen’s cousin Pam Southas-Olbrantz (See THE BELLINGHAM BEAT) asking if he was dating anyone and, if not, he should call Helen. He did and after a few dinners, movies and other outings, they were engaged and then married on October 10, 1987. Helen loved her teaching career in the Lake Washington School District. She preferred teaching and avoided opportunities to work in the school administration, preferring the excitement and gratification working with students. Helen retired after 37 years in the classroom.

Helen and Chris have two sons: Thomas, born on November 13, 1991, who majored in business at Chapman University and works at SAP Concur and James, born on January 6, 1996, who majored in Microbiology at CalPoly in San Luis Obispo, California. He now works as a Financial Advisor at Barnum Financial. The boys are not known to be fluent in Greek. However, on a trip to Greece, Chris and Helen went on an outing and left young Thomas with his grandmother. When they returned, they found him playing with other children and speaking fluently in Greek.

Playing Soccer

As a youngster in Chris’ village boys would take an old sock and stuff it with paper then kick it around like a soccer ball as real balls were not available. Chris never had big toenails as the boys would play barefoot and often kick the rocks or the dirt instead of the ball. With no electricity, Chris would listen to soccer games on a small portable radio.

Pictures Left to Right: Western Washington University soccer team, 1974, University of Washington soccer team, 1976, With soccer award, 2017

At the age of 14 he played for a local Bellingham team, then as a freshman at WWU and at the UW. He played on Greek-American teams with Louie Apostolou, George Pirotis, Theo Kalasoundas, Chris and Evangelos Pamboukas and others. Chris still plays on senior teams and finds it relaxing to kick the ball around although the teams now have become increasingly selective in recruiting players. He has also served as a board member for the Greater Seattle Soccer League since the early 1990s.

Some Final Thoughts

Pictured Left to Right

Front: Vicki Skoularakos, Anastasia Berg, Aspasia Sotiriou;

Sitting: Demetrios Sotiriou, Eleni Sotiriou, Anastasia Zervas, Helen Zervas;

Back : Sophia Zervas Berg, Panagoula Skoularako, 2013

Chris remembers his mother being a bit protective and warned him with “ta matia sou tesera” (keep your eyes open) when he went out. He uses the saying “you are what you were when” knowing that the beliefs and culture with which he was raised has made him what he is today. He remembers being teased and learning some of the nasty words when he began to learn English from his Bellingham peers. Had he remained in Greece, where there is little heavy industry, he would probably be working in a technical or educational setting as his mother placed a high value on education.

The Greek value of family togetherness is important to Chris as seen in the large holiday gatherings where everybody is welcome. The Greek Orthodox Church, whether in Bellingham or other Washington cities is an important “link” for older Greeks as well as for younger people who may be more removed from the “old country.”

By John and Joann Nicon July 2024.

Photos 1 (Chris and Helen 2017) and 19 (Chris with soccer award) by John Nicon, all others from Zervas family collection.

Sources

Video interview by John and Joann Nicon, August 2017