Charalambos Panayotis Kotronis

Charalambos “Laki” P. Kotronis, passed away on June 12, 2022, in Greenville, North Carolina. Laki was born on April 26, 1936 in Greece to the late Panayotis and Helen (Charalambidou) Kotronis. He was the loving husband of over 50 years to the late Phyllis A. Kotronis. Laki is survived by his loving children; Nanette Geiman and her husband, Jim; Scott Kotronis and his wife, Kiersten; Leslie McKeever and her husband, Jim; and James Kotronis and his wife, Liza; hisgrandchildren:David and his wife, Nicole; Danielle and her husband, Brendan; and Devin and his wife, Kelly; Meaghan and her husband Kevin; Daniel and his fiancée, Alicia; and Shannon and her husband, Liam; and Logan and Ava Kotronis, and Avery and Olivia; Arya Kotronis and Hannah. In addition he has four great grandchildren: Brynn, Paige, Henry, and Landon. He also leaves two step sisters in Greece, Anna and Thelxi. He had been living in Corolla, North Carolina with his companion, Bonnie Smith, for 7 years. Laki came to the United States as a foreign exchange student and attended Clarion High School. It was here that he met his wife, Phyllis. He became a U.S. citizen and spent his life living the American Dream. Laki once said that he knew that it would never be easy, but he didn’t know it would be so hard. He knew that anything worth having also had sacrifices. He worked hard and self taught himself about computers. He was an early pioneer in developing the mainframe at General Electric. After 25 years he went on to work for Johnson Controls. Upon retiring Laki moved back east to be closer to family. He was a firm believer in destiny and taking chances - he would probably say they were polar opposites but one in the same in navigating life. Your destiny is there, but you get there by taking a chance. Laki was the one to go to for knowledge about anything. It didn’t matter if he had never done it before. It could be history, carpentry, gardening, wine making, or upholstery. You name it and he knew about or how to, probably had done, or tried it. Although he lived most of his life in the US, he still had his accent. It would definitely get stronger after spending time with his friends at New Freedom Coffee Shop and Restaurant . The restaurant was his “cheers” place. He truly lived life to its fullest, when at 79 years of age he moved to Corolla in the Outer Banks. The water was so much a part of his early life and he wanted to live by the ocean. He enjoyed his remaining years there by making friends and living by his motto: “Life is Good” He is greatly missed by his family and friends.He is our inspiration to a life well-lived. And his life is a lesson to all - live your life to its fullest. A public visitation will be held on Saturday, July 9th from 10:00 am- 11:00 am at Hartenstein Funeral and Cremation Care, Inc., 19 S. Main St., Stewartstown, PA 17363.A funeral service will begin at 11:00 am, officiated by Rev. Melissa McDade, with interment immediately following in St. Paul, Hametown, Lutheran Cemetery.