For my Grandfather

My grandfather Georgios Terzopoulos passed away yesterday 27/03/2024. Below is the eulogy I delivered today at his funeral.

-Grandpa hold on tight! In a couple of days, I’ll be home!

-If we are lucky, my boy, we will meet.

With these words, I from England and my grandfather from here hung up the phone. To be honest, I did not expect to return in time, but once again my grandfather my overcame the battle ahead and we managed to meet.

Georgios Terzopoulos was a man that went through a lot. Several people reassured me that he had a full life, having reached 94. To me, my grandpa lived through a lot, but that had little to do with his age. We all know people who, even if they live 200 years, will say the same things. This, of course, was not the case for my grandfather.

He was born into a family that was quite wealthy in Fatsa of Pontos but coming to Greece did not have the same luck, as a result, my grandfather worked in tobacco from an early age. Growing up, he lived through the German occupation and the civil war, saw two of his brothers exiled, and was imprisoned three times as a teenager for the political beliefs he had not yet voiced. When these were over, he emigrated in search of a better life for his family and himself. He went to Germany without knowing the language and without having someone there. He stepped out into the unknown, worked hard, until he was offered a job in Mexico, with a salary unheard of for a poor kid from Katerini. However, his father fell ill and my grandpa returned to Greece to see him, eventually staying here to more closely support his family. Then he did what he knew best: agriculture. He started progressing in the industry, dipped into exports, met my grandmother Antigone, whom he loved very much, and they started a family.

In time he became financially successful, but his home needed a change. And my grandfather never stayed idle. Along with others he founded the local chapter of PASOK in Pieria. Through his struggle for change, he met a lot of people. The love that the people had for him was shown in practice, with his election as a Member of Parliament for 12 consecutive years. After that, he returned to agriculture which was the work he loved, but also to the family he adored. But even then, when he should have been able to enjoy the fruits of his labour and spend time with his two young grandchildren, life came and took away the woman he loved so much. He wasn’t left alone, he had all of us, but it surely wouldn’t be the same.

My grandpa never expressed it. Of course, I was young and did not know how he experienced it at the time. I do know that he always spoke highly of my grandmother Antigone, so I understand how much it hurt when he lost her. Giorgos Terzopoulos, however, knew hardship and still stood tall. Finally, this turbulent life of his, had a difficult end in store for him. My grandfather, even in this ordeal, did not give up; his great endurance gave him continued pain but also another chance to prove his soul’s strength, for the final time.

This was my grandfather's life. A man who had the odds stacked against him but always came out stronger. With him, I shared not only his name but also his love for poetry and passion for politics. But I hope to share even a fraction of his success. For you this speech is a final farewell to Giorgos; for me, it is a promise that I will worthily carry the name he sacrificed so much to build. 

Today we are celebrating the teenager who snuck into the offices of the Germans to steal documents for the resistance, the orator who although a farmer spoke better than lawyers, the 90-year-old who went for pruning, the father of Fanis and Miltos, the husband of Antigone, the brother of Menelaos and the late Kostas, Despo and Takis, the grandfather of Pavlos and Giorgos, the father-in-law of Despoina. And I say we celebrate because according to one of his favourite poems: “As you set out for Ithaka hope your road is a long one”. And it was long, and it was full, and it was virtuous.

Grandpa thank you for everything. You’ve deservedly earned your Ithaka.

My grandfather with Andreas Papandreou

My grandfather and Kostas Simitis

Andreas Papandreou writes to my grandfather about his decision to leave politics. Eventually he dissuaded him and my grandfather was elected again.

My grandfather's political brochure