Apostolos Nikopolitis' Obituary
Apostolos Nikopolitis passed away peacefully at home on Thursday, June 18, with his son George by his side.
He is survived by his three children, Anna (Mark) Nikopolitis-Brown, Maria (David) Juras, and George Nikopolitis; five grandchildren, Aleka, Paul, and Ana Brown, and Alexander and Waylon Juras; his sister, Maria (Nikopolitis) Patonis; and nephews Apostolos and George. He also leaves behind his lifelong best friend, Kosta "Gus" Papadelis, and Gus's wife, Niki.
His sister shared these words: "Please make sure to tell him I love him and will miss him terribly. He was my everything." Though they did not grow up together, they spent more than sixty years side by side in America, and she knew that whenever she needed him, he would be there before she could hang up the phone.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his former wife, Alexandra; his brother-in-law, Stavros (Steve) Patonis; his sister-in-law, Sofoula Giannoulidi; his grandparents; and many aunts, uncles, and cousins in Greece and Australia.
Apostolos was born on April 18, 1941, in the village of Damiano, Greece. His father died of illness while serving in the Greek Army, and his mother passed when Apostolos was only five, leaving him and his older sister, Maria, orphaned. Their Uncle George made the difficult decision to place them in state orphanages, believing they'd have a better chance there — a choice that changed the course of Apostolos' life.
From the orphanage, he attended trade school, studying electrical work before his best friend, Thanassi, convinced him to switch to carpentry, which became a lifelong passion. After graduating, he returned to his village, but with jobs scarce, Uncle George once again stepped in, sending him to Thessaloniki to find work.
Through Thanassi, Apostolos met Alexandra. They married and welcomed their daughter Anna in 1966. In 1968, his sister Maria, who had settled in the U.S., sponsored the family's immigration to America. Apostolos, Alexandra, and two-year-old Anna crossed the Atlantic by ship in search of a better life.
He arrived speaking no English but found work at Ferndale Fastener as a machinist. His work ethic and knowledge of the metric system earned him a promotion into the tool-and-die department, and he stayed for 33 years, retiring in April 2003.
Apostolos was a lifelong learner — he took night classes to learn English and taught himself to repair nearly anything: cars, appliances, lawn mowers, plumbing, electrical systems. He completed a correspondence course in small engine repair and often fixed thrift-store appliances just to give them away.
In 1979, the family moved to Troy, Michigan, where a chance encounter at a McDonald's introduced Apostolos to Kosta "Gus" Papadelis — the start of a forty-six-year friendship built on daily phone calls, coffee, and flea market trips.
Long before most people embraced computers, Apostolos taught himself the internet, using it to track investments and hunt for bargain airfare — famously chasing Spirit Airlines' $9 fare sales to Fort Lauderdale.
After retiring, he bought a condominium in Delray Beach, Florida, and made it his permanent home in 2021. That same year, he was diagnosed with wet macular degeneration, and his eyesight steadily declined until he lost sight in one eye and much of the vision in the other, ending his days behind the wheel and in the woodshop. Still, he refused to complain, determined to remain in his Florida home.
In 2025, his family was blessed to meet Marie Lunise Dieujuste, who became his caregiver and cherished friend — bringing him his daily Dunkin' coffee, encouraging him out for meals, and treating him as though he were her own Papou.
Apostolos believed in hard work, lifelong learning, self-reliance, and helping others. He overcame poverty, war, and unimaginable loss to build a life of perseverance and quiet strength. He will be deeply loved, forever remembered, and greatly missed.
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