Mary

Katsounakis

Mary "Marika" G. Katsounakis

Mary "Marika" G. (Theodoridi) Katsounakis, 85, of West Springfield, passed away on November 8, 2026.

Marika was born on July 11, 1941, in Palaia Roumata, Chania, Crete, Greece, to the late Nikolaos and Aggeliki (Mathoudaki) Theodoridi. She lived in Greece until 1969, when she married her husband, George Katsounakis, and immigrated to Springfield, Massachusetts. She made her home in Springfield for 52 years before later moving to West Springfield.

Marika worked as a seamstress at several local factories. As luck would have it, she would often work for only six months before the factory went out of business. She spent most of her life as a devoted homemaker, taking tremendous pride and joy in caring for her family.

Marika expressed her love through countless acts of care. She would stay up late frying homemade keftedes for her family to take to the beach the next morning, make kalitsounia to have on hand in case guests stopped by, and hem her children's clothes. Her family was always at the center of her life.

Marika was a proud Greek whose heart and thoughts were never far from her homeland. She intentionally did not learn English so that her two children would become fluent in Greek and remain connected to their heritage. She deeply cherished her family in Greece and was grateful for every opportunity to visit them. She also had the honor of welcoming several relatives into her home throughout the years. Few things brought her greater happiness than having family visit from Greece. She often referred to the nieces she helped raise as her "first children."

Generous by nature, Marika lived by the words, "If I have a dollar, then my children have a dollar." She gave freely of herself and found her greatest happiness in the happiness of those she loved.

Later in life, Marika enjoyed family vacations to Walt Disney World and made two memorable trips to the West Coast. On her first trip, she visited Los Angeles, Hollywood, and Disneyland in 2007. Years later, she returned to Disneyland and was even convinced to attend the four-day Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim. Marika loved traveling, dining out, and, above all, spending time with her family.

During the last nine years of her life, Marika helped raise her cherished grandson, George, with whom she shared a special bond and many treasured memories. Later in life, she moved to West Springfield to live with her daughter, son-in-law, and grandson. She was also a member of the Cretan Ladies Society "Proodos."

Marika was predeceased by her parents, Nikolaos and Aggeliki Theodoridi; her beloved husband, George Katsounakis; her beloved son, Michael Manouso Katsounakis, whose memory

she carried in her heart always; her brothers, Eftihios Theodoridis and Ioannis Theodoridis; her sisters, Zaharenia Renieri and Alexandra Ntegiannaki; and her brother-in-law, Spiro Renieris.

She is survived by her devoted daughter, Angela, and son-in-law, Ioannis Katzakis; her beloved grandson, George Katzakis; and her cherished nieces, Anastasia Fytraki and her husband, Iosef, Maria Renieri, and Aggeliki Renieri and her husband, George Katzakis. She also leaves many extended family members and friends in the United States and Greece who will remember her with great love.

Calling hours will be held on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. at Tylunas Funeral Home, 159 Broadway Street, Chicopee. A service officiated by Fr. Dionysios Koulianos will be held at the funeral home at 6:30 p.m.

On Thursday, November 12, 2026, the family will gather at Tylunas Funeral Home at 9:00 a.m. and proceed in procession to St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Springfield for a funeral service at 10:00 a.m. Burial will follow at Oak Grove Cemetery in Springfield.

Family and friends are invited to visit the Tylunas Funeral Home website to leave remembrances and words of sympathy for the family.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Cretan Ladies Society "Proodos" or St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Springfield.