OBITUARY
Reverend Father Dorotheos Tryfonopoulos
Reverend Father Dorotheos (neé Dimitrios) Tryfonopoulos fell asleep in the Lord, at the age of 94, on Sunday, April 6, 2025. Father Dorotheos was born to Reverend Father Ioannis and Presvytera Aikaterini on August 5, 1930 in Methoni, Greece. He was the youngest, and last, of six siblings, and predeceased by Spyro (Lambrini), Eleni (Yianni), Fotini (Savvas), Panagiota (Spyro), and his brother Emmanuel (Manos) who passed recently on October 17, 2024. He is predeceased by his wife, Presvytera Stavroula, and survived by his daughters, Katerina, and Christine (Psefteas, George), grandchildren, Peter and Stavroula, sister-in-law, Shirley, and many nieces and nephews in Canada and in Greece. Fr. Dorotheos was a devoted Priest, husband, father and grandfather.
After leaving Methoni, Father spent time working with his Godfather the Great Bishop Dorotheos (whose name he was given when he was ordained a priest), in Trikala, Greece. After leaving Greece, he arrived in Kingston, Ontario, where he worked several jobs and eventually settled as a barber with his own barber shop. In July 1967, he married Stavroula Mazarakou, and in 1969, leaving a pregnant Stavroula in the care of his brother, Emmanuel and his wife, Shirley, he returned once again to Greece, where he went to Theological school and was ordained to the priesthood on May 4, 1970, he returned to his wife and 9-month-old daughter, Katerina and in Septebmer 1971, Presvytera gave birth to their second daughter, Christine. Shortly after, Father was assigned to his first parish, St. Katherine’s, in St. Catherine’s, Ontario, where he and his family spent 8 years surrounded by a wonderful parish community. Following a visit to Vancouver, British Columbia, in 1978, he was asked by His Grace (then) Bishop Sotirios of Toronto, to move to Vancouver where they would be setting up a new parish and community in East Vancouver. Never someone to say no when asked to serve his Church, Father and Presvytera packed up their family and their belongings and arrived in Vancouver in 1979, where a hall was rented opposite a Russian Orthodox Church that became the Greek Orthodox Church and Community of East Vancouver. In October 1985, they held the Thyranixia at the newly constructed Sts. Nicholas and Dimitrios church on Boundary Road.
Father Dorotheos was a dedicated servant to the church. After his retirement on the Sunday of the Holy Cross, in March of 1996, Father continued to serve the church by substituting for clergy across Canada. He spent many months at Holy Cross parish in Montreal, Quebec, and also spent time at St. Demetrios in Calgary, Alberta.
Anyone who knew Father, knew of his love of driving and traveling. He drove across Canada many times, some with his family, but many times making the journey alone, either to visit his extended family in Kingston, Ontario, or to visit his previous community in St. Catherine’s Ontario, or to serve at churches in Montreal or Toronto which had need of a substitute priest. He would drive down to the San Francisco Bay Area, to visit his daughter and her family, and then continue south to Texas and Mexico, visiting churches along his journey. Even on holidays, Father would always spend Sunday liturgy with whichever church he happened to be passing by. His joy of travel was not limited to North America, once shipping his car to Amsterdam, so that he could drive through Spain, France, and Italy and finally arrive in Greece to visit his extended family. His journeys took him as far as Australia, Malaysia and Singapore, and he was always impressed by the people and clergy that he met along the way.
Father had a deep love for his parish of Sts. Nicholas and Dimitrios, where he got to know the families through visits to their homes, restaurants, and wherever else was convenient for his parishioners. He worked tirelessly, along with his Parish Council, when they were building the physical church on Boundary Road, securing donations to make it a reality. Father was a proud grandfather of his two grandchildren, Peter and Stavroula, who brought him great joy! He was also known as “Papouli” to his nieces and nephews and cherished spending time with his family.
Father’s dedication and love for his church and community could be witnessed up until the day he became ill, when he would still attend Sunday liturgy, even if to sit in the altar and serve with the current Proistamenos, Father Timoleon. Father was called upon to provide prayer, encouragement and words of faith when people were faltering, or sick, and he was also there with love and prayer when families were celebrating through weddings, baptisms and other momentous occasions.
Father’s presence will be missed, but we are comforted with the knowledge that he is now in a place “where there is no pain, no sorrow, no sighing, but life everlasting”!
May his memory be eternal!
Αιωνία του η μνήμη!
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to Sts. Nicholas and Dimitrios Greek Orthodox Church.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.MountPleasantFuneral.com for the Tryfonopoulos family.
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