Elizabeth Bakis Phillips

Elizabeth Bakis Phillips (born Elisavet Thomas Bakis), 88, of Florence, South Carolina, passed away on Tuesday, August 25, 2020, from COVID-19 (Coronavirus).Elizabeth was born in Nostimo, a small mountain village near Karpenisi in central Greece.Elizabeth was the fourth of five children born to parents Thomas and Efrosini Bakis (Zacharopoulos).The Bakis family farmed on the mountainside, and Elizabeth learned from an early age to sew and cook.Her father Thomas was also the head chanter (psalti, cantor) at the village church, and Elizabeth grew up loving God.During World War II, Nazi German forces attacked and occupied Greece for four years, and Elizabeth’s schooling was cut short.At the end of the war, she left Nostimo for the city of Athens where she joined her sister Xanthi and learned the business of dressmaking.Like her sister, she became an expert seamstress. In Athens, Elizabeth met her future husband Nicholas (“Nick”) P. Philippakis, and in 1957 after a long distance engagement they married in Toronto, Canada.After the birth of their older son Philip, they moved back to Athens, Greece and in 1963 moved to Florence, South Carolina where two of her brothers had settled.In Florence, she gave birth to her younger child Thomas, worked as a seamstress for Belk Department Stores, and ran her own clothing alteration business from home while raising her boys.In 1971, when they became naturalized US citizens, she, Nick and Philip changed the family name to Phillips. Elizabeth was a loving and encouraging mother and grandmother.Elizabeth was very religious and attended church services wherever she lived. She was an active member of Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church where she sang in the choir, volunteered and cooked Greek food for bake sales and other events, and joined the Ladies Philoptochos Society, a philanthropic group.Elizabeth was an expert in cooking Greek style foods and pastries, and she had the reputation for cutting baklava especially well for bake sales and food festivals. In the summer of 2010, Elizabeth moved to the Heritage Home of Florence where she stayed the rest of her life.By then, her husband and older son had predeceased but she continued to be a supportive mother to her surviving son Thomas.Elizabeth was always happy to receive visitors, and she was appreciative of the good work of the Heritage Home staff. Elizabeth is survived by her son Thomas Philippakis and daughter-in-law Anneca Matrakas Philippakis of Boston, Massachusetts, daughter-in-law Lorrie Phillips Stacy of Beaufort, South Carolina, grandchildren Elisavet Philippakis of Boston, Sarah Phillips of Blythewood, South Carolina, Elissa Phillips of Greenville, South Carolina, and Owen Phillips of Beaufort.She is also survived by her sister Xanthi Papaspyrou (Bakis) of Athens, Greece and her brother Angelo Bakis and sister-in-law Eleftheria Bakis (Nikolakakos) of Florence, South Carolina.She is predeceased by her parents Thomas and Efrosini Bakis of Nostimo, Greece and Florence, her husband Nick Phillips, their older child Philip Phillips of Blythewood, South Carolina, and her parents-in-law Philippos and Eleni Philippakis of Athens, Greece.She is also predeceased by her oldest brother Christos Bakis and his wife Maria Bakis of Athens, Greece, her older brother Andrew Bakis of Charlotte, North Carolina, and her brother in law Athanasios Papaspyrou.She leaves behind many nieces and nephews and many friends from the United States, Greece and Canada. The funeral will be held at the Transfiguration of Our Savior Greek Orthodox Church at 2990 S Cashua Drive, Florence, South Carolina, 29501 on Friday, August 28, 2020.The funeral service, led by Rev. Fr. Catalin Mot, will start at 12:00 noon.Interment will follow at Mount Hope Cemetery directed by Stoudenmire-Dowling Funeral Home.In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in memory of Elizabeth Phillips to Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church, 2990 S Cashua Drive, Florence, South Carolina, 29501. Please send messages to the family at the obit section of www.stoudenmiredowling.com. Social distancing will be observed at the church and cemetery.