Kenneth Poe Funeral Services

January 17, 2021

CHARLOTTE – Calliope “Clara” Fokakis Bacogeorge (nicknamed “Mama Gus”), our beloved matriarch, passed away peacefully at home in her final sleep on Sunday, January 17, 2021 just a few months shy of her 89th birthday.  She was the youngest of 5 children born to Greek immigrants, the late Evangelia (Creticos) and Thrace Nicholas Fokakis, of Patmos, Greece.

Clara was born on March 23, 1932, in Hattiesburg, Mississippi during the Great Depression.  When she was nine, Clara’s parents took her, her sister and three brothers to Wilmington, NC.  Her family life changed dramatically in 1942 after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor as she watched her three brothers bravely enlist in the U.S. military to serve our country.  While these events profoundly affected her daily life, Clara remained strong and supported her family emotionally.  During this time, her family opened “The Hot Shop” in downtown Wilmington, and later co-owned and operated the “Crystal Pier Restaurant & Hotel” on Wrightsville Beach - which Clara’s family constructed and is known today as “The Oceanic”.  Her life would change again in 1954 when Hurricane Hazel hit Wrightsville Beach, destroying the family’s pier house restaurant.  Clara often told stories of “the ocean meeting the sound” during that devastating storm.  Sadly, her family lost everything.  A new era began in the early 1960s as Wrightsville Beach recovered and was rebuilt.  Clara worked with her father for several years in the restaurant and then later for Wachovia Bank in Wilmington before being introduced by Anna and Xenophon Nixon to her betrothed; Greek immigrant Gus. G. Bacogeorge.

In 1962, she and Gus were married and Clara relocated to Charlotte.  Together they embraced the American Dream and operated “Johnny’s Grill”, a restaurant Gus had previously purchased from a kind man, John Couchell.  In 1967, “Johnny’s Grill” was partially destroyed by a fire.  After the fire, and while raising her family of three children, she helped Gus obtain a small business loan and together they built a new restaurant, “Gus’ Sir Beef”.  The new restaurant opened its doors in November of 1969 just across the street on Monroe Road, and became a Charlotte staple.  At Gus’, the New York strips, T-bones, rib eyes and the sirloins were sizzling.  The dining room was always full with waitresses scurrying from one table to another, carrying plates filled with hearty ‘meat-and-two’ - the “fresh my farm” vegetables grown with love on the family farm.  It was here that Clara thrived managing the storefront and register, forming close bonds with local patrons.  For years, the entire family worked together in the restaurant and lived in a new house just a few blocks away.  Life was good.

Throughout her life, Clara has been a dedicated and faithful servant of the Lord who deeply cherished her Greek Orthodox faith.  She was a member of the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Cathedral and St. Nektarios Greek Orthodox Church and contributed to the construction of the Hellenic Hall and the new sanctuary of St. Nektarios.  She was an active member of the Philoptochos Society, a committed attendant at the Yiasou Greek festival, and often chaired Young At Heart events at St. Nektarios.  In her later years, she was able to travel overseas to Greece (thanks to her sweet niece, Mary Kay), where she visited her beloved home island of Patmos.  She was most proud of Saint John the Theologian, who was inspired to write the Book of Revelation on the island.  

Clara embodied everything that is good in the world.  She had the kindest heart, gave the warmest hugs, and had a way of making people feel special and loved.  Clara developed a new penchant for all-you-can-eat crab legs and chicken wings and doled out her homemade fondants at special events.  She taught us that genuine kindness is a powerful tool, that it opens unlikely doors and softens the hardest hearts.  Clara was grounded in love and compassion.  She endured unfathomable heartbreak throughout her lifetime: the unexpected loss of a beloved brother shortly after his return from WWII, a stillborn baby, lupus, and breast cancer.  Yet, she possessed a quiet resolve, showed great perseverance, and was a source of strength for her entire family. Our loss runs deep, but when we feel great loss, it is because we also feel great love.  Clara was most certainly loved by all who knew her. 

Clara’s family was always at the center of her life.  She was a devoted wife, mother, sister, grandmother, aunt, and friend.  Her infectious laugh and kind spirit will remain in our hearts forever.  

Clara is survived by her three children; George G. Bacogeorge, Thrace Bacogeorge, and Lisa-Leigh Schwartz and her husband, Jeff all of Charlotte, NC; grandchildren, Caleigh and Costan Bacogeorge, Stratton Bacogeorge, and Lea and Evan Schwartz and many beloved cousins, nieces and nephews.  She was predeceased by her husband of 48 years, the late Gus G. Bacogeorge; her three brothers Gus, Nick and George Fokakis and her sister Katherine Belissary.

Funeral Services will be 1:00 PM on Saturday, January 23, 2021 at St. Nektarios Greek Orthodox Church.  The family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at the church.  Interment will follow at Evergreen Cemetery.  Covid protocols will be followed at the church.  The family invites friends that are unable to attend the service in person to join them via livestream at https://www.stnektarios.org/new_webcast.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the St. Hermione Home for homeless pregnant women.  Memorials may be sent to St. Nektarios Greek Orthodox Church, c/o St. Hermione Home, 5108 Kuykendall Road, Charlotte, NC 28270.

Arrangements are in the care of Kenneth W. Poe Funeral & Cremation Service, 1321 Berkeley Ave., Charlotte, NC 28204; (704) 641-7606. Online condolences can be shared at www.kennethpoeservices.com.