Laverne R. Vavaroutsos

LaVerne Vavaroutsos, 86, of Ottawa, Illinois, passed away Tuesday, March 20, 2012 at St. Francis Medical Center in Peoria. Funeral Service for LaVerne will be 10:00 a.m. Monday, March 26, 2012 at Ottawa Funeral Home with Fr. Stefanos Bithos of All Saints Greek Orthodox Church in Joliet officiating. Visitation will be 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, March 25, 2012 at Ottawa Funeral Home. Burial will be at Ottawa Avenue Cemetery. LaVerne was born August 1, 1925 in Streator, Illinois, to Vernon and Evangeline (Hatala) Benckendorf. She married Kyriakos Vavaroutsos on June 26, 1958 in Joliet, Illinois. She was a member of All Saints Greek Orthodox Church in Joliet and St. Columba Church in Ottawa. She and her husband owned and operated Koolies from 1981 to 2010 and co-owned and operated the Green Mill. She also worked at the Hiway Restaurant, at LOF Glass Co., and at the shipyards in Seneca during WWII on the LTS. She is survived by one son, Angelo (Vicki) Vavaroutsos of Ottawa; one daughter, Athena (Michael) Farrell of Ottawa; nine grandchildren, Christopher (Beth) Vavaroutsos, David Vavaroutsos, Ryan, Kevin & Kyle Farrell, Nicole and Kurtis Vavaroutsos, Jessica (Beau) Shultz, and Amy Carranza; eight great-grandchildren, Alexis, Cameron, Maddlyn, Dylyah, Nevah, Beau Shawn, Brady and Aiden; three sisters, Joyce Gjerde, Elise Myers, and Tamra (Eugene) Morris. She was preceded in death by her husband; one son, Lewis; a daughter in infancy; her parents; two brothers, Allan and V. Emmett Benckendorf; and four sisters, Audrey Hedrick, Lois Shockey, Elizabeth and Karen Benckendorf. Pallbearers will be her grandsons. Memorials may be directed to the donors' choice.