Vasilios "Bill" Zikakis

Vasilios (Bill) Zikakis, 83, passed away on Monday, December 2, surrounded by his loving family at his home in Carlsbad, CA. He was a longtime resident of Ithaca, NY, a former owner of local car dealerships, a real estate developer, and an active member of the St. Catherine Greek Orthodox Church.

Zikakis was born on May 14, 1930 in Shreveport, LA to the Rev. Damianos Zikakis (a Greek Orthodox Priest) and Helen Armendariz Zikakis. He was the fifth of six children.

As a boy, his family moved frequently, as it was not unusual then for priests to be regularly transferred from parish to parish. During his high school years the family lived in Little Rock, Arkansas, and Zikakis graduated from Little Rock High School in 1948 and attended Little Rock Junior College. During high school, a local businessman who was a member of the church approached Zikakis's father to tell him that he believed Zikakis had the talent to succeed in sales, and to ask the priest for permission to ask Zikakis to sell cars in his used car lot. There was one problem: he did not know how to drive. The man replied, "I will teach him." Thus, Zikakis began his automotive career at age 17.

During the Korean War, Zikakis served in the Navy as a submariner on the US Naval Submarine Tigrone. During that time, his father was relocated to a new parish in Binghamton, NY; upon his honorable discharge and disembarking his submarine in Norfolk, VA, Zikakis hitchhiked 500 miles to join his family in their new town. After arriving in Binghamton he quickly reestablished himself in the car business first as a car salesman and then as a sales manager, and met a cute girl, Ruth, who lived next door to his parent's new home. They were married in 1957 and had four children: Chris, Mark, Andrea and Alex.

Zikakis worked long days, six days per week, to succeed at work and provide for his young family. At the request of his young wife, he interrupted his workday to be home for a family dinner each evening, and then returned to work until 9-10 PM. To this day, his children say the conversations around the dinner table were their best education.

In 1969 Zikakis moved to Ithaca, when he purchased Ithaca's Chevrolet dealership which at that time was located at 401 Elmira Road. The business thrived under his leadership. Over the next few years he added the Volvo, Mazda, Subaru, BMW, and Isuzu franchises to his operation and began developing a series of real estate properties.

In 1990, Zikakis sold his automotive dealerships to focus on real estate development. He built a variety of local properties including the buildings that are now home to The Buttermilk Falls Shopping Plaza, Goodyear Tire service center, Tim Horton's Restaurant, The Ithaca Academy of Dance, and Zaza's Restaurant. He also built a small multi-tenant building on Commercial Avenue that served as his personal office for many years.

Zikakis was an active member of the Ithaca community. He served on the board of the Salvation Army. He served as board member and past president of his church, St. Catherine Greek Orthodox Church. He served on the advisory boards of Security Norstar Bank, Fleet Bank, and The Savings Bank of the Finger Lakes. He was a director of The First National Bank of Ithaca and a director of the New York State Auto Dealers Association. He was a member of the Ithaca Country Club and the Ithaca Yacht Club.

In 1982 he was named an "import dealer of distinction" by Sports Illustrated magazine.

Zikakis is predeceased by two sisters; Virginia Zikakis and Elizabeth Hastings. He is survived by his devoted wife, Ruth, of 56 years; children Chris (and Betsy) Zikakis, Mark (and Lala) Zikakis, Andrea, and Alex (and Lany) Zikakis; six grandchildren Christopher, Maxwell, Calvin, Isabella, Henry, and Samson; his siblings George Zikakis, Maria Maines, and Virginia (and husband George) Ulmer; in-laws and lifetime friends Frank (and Connie) Smith; and a large number of loving nephews, nieces, and grandnephews and grandnieces.

He will be long remembered for his business creativity and discipline, his willingness to take well-considered risks, his love for a good joke, and the fine example he set for how to be a gentleman, husband, and father.

Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. on Monday, December 9, 2013 at St. Catherine Greek Orthodox Church at 120 W Seneca Street. Visitation will be held on Sunday, December 8, 2013 from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Bangs Funeral Home, with Trisagion services scheduled for 2:45 p.m. An additional visitation will be held on Monday at the church from 10 to 11 a.m. Burial with military honors will be held at Lakeview Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to St. Catherine Greek Orthodox Church,
120 West Seneca Street, Ithaca, New York 14850.