One of Portland's West-Enders Passes Away


SCARBOROUGH—George E. Lekousi, 91, died Thursday at his home amid friends and family.

He was born in Portland, Maine in 1918 to Eustace and Helen Lekousi, proprietors of the well-known Lekousi’s Bakery on Congress Street. George grew up in the West End near Union Station, working in his family’s local businesses there. His parents established themselves in the West End nearly a century ago, playing a prominent role there early in the twentieth century. Their home on Congress Street remained in the family for 100 years.

George attended Portland High School and later enlisted in the U.S. Naval Reserves. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, he was called to active duty and served in the North Atlantic on the net tender USS Nutmeg and later in the Pacific Rim as a First Class Signalman on LST 1063.

Following his honorable discharge from the U.S. Navy, he and his brother, James, opened a store on Valley Street. Later, he worked at Lekousi’s Bakery for many years, after his father had started this notable business. A baker and salesperson, George built up the reputation of the bakery through direct sales to restaurants and the food-industry in Southern Maine and central coastal areas of the state. At one time, Lekousi’s Bakery was one of the state’s leading bakeries, delivering baked goods from York to Sagadahoc Counties, and known for excellent products.

In the 1970’s, George purchased the former Victoria Inn on Congress Street with his brother Andrew. They renovated the historic structure and reopened it as the Westfield Inn which George managed for nearly 20 years with the adjoining Quick Lunch Cafe until his retirement.

Mr. Lekousi was a long-time member of the Order of AHEPA, a Greek-American fraternal organization--H.W. Longfellow Chapter #82 of Portland, Maine. He was also a life member of the VFW of South Portland, Maine (Post #832) and the Masons (AASR, Northern Masonic Jurisdiction of the USA, Valley of Portland and the Gov. William King Lodge of Scarborough, #219, A.F. & A.M.). In addition, he had been a member of the Kora Shriners of Portland, Maine.

For much of his life he attended Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church of Portland, Maine, serving on the Parish Council as president under the spiritual leadership of one of the community’s former priests, the late Very Rev. George Venetos. Mr. Lekousi and other members of the Parish Council were instrumental in purchasing a parsonage for the community’s pastors during his term of office. George’s father, Eustace Lekousi, and his mother, Helen Lebares Lekousi, were among the Portland Greek community’s earliest members in Portland and pivotal in the establishment of the local Greek community. His mother was the first Greek woman to settle in the Portland area and the first to attend local public schools, after having studied Classical Greek for a number of years in Greece.

George had a life-long interest in art and music, at one time studying violin under the tutelage of a noted Portland violinist. He was fond, as friends knew, of listening to performances of great tenors and big-band era music, as well as of Greek and Middle-Eastern music. One of his favorite CD’s was of the 35-piece Hellenic and Near Eastern Musical Society Orchestra, organized and conducted by his son-in-law, Christos Papoutsy. George recently attended—and counted among one of his most memorable evenings—the debut performance of the Metropolis of Boston Philharmonic Orchestra at Harvard’s Sanders Theatre when more than 60 Greek and Near-Eastern musicians gave a stellar concert of contemporary and traditional Greek and Near-Eastern music last November.

A devoted sports fan, too, George enjoyed watching local sporting events, particularly football games of his grandson, Philip Lekousi, at Scarborough High School, and events involving his brother, one of Maine’s sports legends, Arthur “Art” Lekousi, of Westbrook. His brother was an outstanding athlete at Portland High School and later a much respected coach and teacher at his alma mater. George enjoyed watching his brother’s matches and attended them whenever possible.

Known for his gregariousness and generosity, George had many friends. A superb dancer in his younger years, George and his wife, Helen, danced to the music of many famous big bands and performers on the pier at Old Orchard Beach. He enjoyed golf, too, and played often with friends and relatives at area courses. Weekly card games of cribbage and poker, and Casco Bay boatings during warmer months were other interests of his.

He attended many reunions of his LST association, traveling throughout the country to participate in the annual events. Many of his former shipmates remained lifelong friends. Some of the more harrowing moments of his Pacific service were favorite anecdotes of his.

George also attended reunions of an association of “Aghiopetritides,” people from his family’s ancestral Greek village, St. Peter, located in the province of Arcadia. This verdant mountain village was one of several towns featured in a 1992 article of the New York Times. Some of the association’s reunions were held in Maine, others as far away as New York, but always drawing hundreds of participants from across the U.S.

George was keenly interested in history, especially local Portland history. A “West-End boy” for much of his entire life, he worked closely with his daughter to reconstruct the early history of the Greek community in Portland and the ambience of his childhood neighborhood. His anecdotal information, coupled with encyclopedic recall of names and dates, furnished a wealth of information for this project. George was fond of recalling interesting stories about his parents, particularly his father’s practical jokes and humorous nature. But his love for his parents, and their work ethic, determination, and intelligence always held his respect and admiration, and figured prominently in his family history stories.

One of his favorite childhood stories is of a former West End fire station manned by horse-drawn vehicles. As a youngster, George recalled running down the street to the fire station with other children whenever the alarm had sounded. The horses, kept in stalls on the street-level, were trained to move forward at the sound of the clanging alarm, drawing down harnesses and rigging suspended above them. Firemen simultaneously slid down the pole and jumped aboard as the pump was being drawn forward by the horses. Shouting excitedly, neighborhood children would run alongside the firemen and horses for a short distance to watch them.

But best of all, he enjoyed spending time with his grandchildren and supporting their activities as they became older. During his prolonged illness late in life, their steadfast devotion to him was a great source of comfort and enjoyment. He was very proud of them.

George is survived by his wife, Helen Ladakakos Lekousi, of Scarborough, a brother and sister-in-law, Arthur and Freda Lekousi, of Westbrook, his son-in-law and daughter, Christos and Mary Papoutsy, of New Hampshire, his son, Louis Lekousi, two grandchildren, Philip and Adara Lekousi, of Scarborough, a daughter-in-law, Laurie Lekousi, and many nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by several siblings: his older sister, Mary Lekousi Netos; younger brothers, Andrew and James Lekousi; a younger sister, Aphrodite Lekousi Tsatsos.

Memorial visitation will be on Tuesday, April 6, 2010, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Hobbs Funeral Home, 230 Cottage Road, South Portland. A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, April 7, 2010, at Hobbs Funeral Home. Interment will follow with prayers and military service at Forest City Cemetery in South Portland. Condolences may be expressed at www.hobbsfuneralhome.com.

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