Efrosini Tsoukalou Samaras

Our most beloved and beautiful mama, Efrosini Tsoukalou Samaras, 95, passed peaceful at home on Friday, August 14, 2026, during the most sacred season of the Greek Orthodox Church, the Dormition of our Holy Mother of God, the Panagia, whom she always felt by her side.

Efrosini was born September 24, 1931, in Lamia, Greece.

She graduated high school in Lamia and was active in her community in many ways.

She married Nikolaos Samaras, and they spent 67 glorious years together in love, faithfulness, laughter, happiness and partnership. They were inseparable, and we find comfort in knowing they are now reunited in Paradise.

Efrosini was a faithful and devout Greek Orthodox Christian. Her faith was at the center of her life, and she lovingly instilled that same devotion, along with the values of kindness, generosity, and service, in her family. For 40 years, she faithfully baked the five prosforon, the sacred loaves of bread used in the Divine Liturgy every Sunday. She offered this gift with great love and reverence. Every year, she protected and nourished her daffodil bulbs, during the winter, to ensure she could harvest over 800 blooms, in early spring, to offer to her beloved church for the Veneration of the Holy Cross service. She was a constant presence in her church- baking, serving, sharing, decorating, and giving of herself wherever she was needed.

She was a strong and brilliant woman of many talents. She was a gifted seamstress, a methodical accountant, an avid gardener with an extraordinary green thumb, the best bread baker and cook and a captivating story teller. Everything she did, she did, with care, purpose, and love.

Above all, she was a mother and grandmother whose love was fierce, unconditional, and boundless. She also loved the many people she welcomed and cared for in her life.

Her children, Dimitrios (Jimmy), of Winston-Salem, Vasiliki (Kiki) and husband Kyriakos (Kirk) Tarasidis, of Greensboro, Argiroula (Anjie) and husband Miltiades Stergakos, of New York and three amazing grandchildren, Georgios Tarasidis, of Connecticut, Nikolaos Tarasidis, of Pennsylvania, and Eleonora Stergakos, of New York, were the great loves of her life. She cherished them all.

Together with her beloved husband and children, Efrosini and her family immigrated to the United States and were proud immigrants, working hard to pursue their American dream. They owned and operated Nick’s Restaurant for 38 years, where Nick and Frances, as they were lovingly known by their customers, worked side by side every day. They opened on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day so that anyone in need could have a warm meal and a place to feel welcome.

After retirement, they enjoyed gardening together, traveling to visit their children and grandchildren, and preparing meals to take to their shut-in friends and neighbors. They harvested seeds from their abundant flower gardens to share with others every year. Efrosini especially enjoyed growing her famous vasiliko, basil, and sharing pots of this herb with her friends.

She served as President of Daughters of Evrytania, The Velouchi Organization, a charitable organization, that helps the elderly, sick and needy in the Evrytanian region of Greece. Efrosini was honored with the Archangel Michael award for her dedicated service through the Metropolis of Atlanta.

Efrosini Lived a long and beautiful life. Rooted in faith, family, hard work, generosity, and service to others. She leaves behind a legacy that cannot be measured simply in years, but in the countless lives she touched, the meals she prepared, the bread she baked, the flowers she grew and shared, the stories she told, the traditions she preserved, and the love she gave so freely.

Her family will forever carry her strength, her faith, her wisdom, and her love in their hearts.

Καλό παράδεισο μανούλα μας!

The funeral service for Efrosini, will be be held on Wednesday August 19, at the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, 435 Keating Drive, Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Visitation will begin at 11:00 am, followed by the Trisagion service and funeral at 12:00 noon. Burial will be at Forsyth Memorial Park.

The family invites everyone to attend a makaria (mercy meal) luncheon following the burial, at the Fellowship Hall, on the church grounds.

Memorial donations may be made to her beloved, Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, 435 Keating Drive, Winston-Salem, NC in her memory.