NEW YORK. – There wasn’t a dry eye left during the triple funeral service of the Ramoundos family members who lost their lives last Sunday evening in Gloucester Township on a head-on crush, few minutes before 5. From the crush the 43-year-old Greek-American driver Panayiotis ‘Peter’ Ramoundos was killed instantly, and his beloved parents, 77-year-old father Demetrios and 80-year-old mother Anastasia got fatally hurt. Two more passengers in the Ramoundos 2008 blue Toyota Camry, the 59-year-old Jack Kalogridis and the 74-year-old Betty Kalogridis got seriously hurt and remain in critical but stable condition at Cooper University Hospital in Camden. The driver of the other car, 53-year-old Richard Mason also died instantly.
Fr. Christoforos Economides officiated the triple funeral service on Tuesday, October 17 at St. Thomas Greek Orthodox Church in Cherry Hill, New Jersey.
The sky was deep blue, but the bright sun was unable to warm the hearts of all who were gathered early in the churchyard in order to attend the funeral. It was the first time in the 50-year history of the church that were invited to sing ‘Mark the Way’ (Μακαρία η Οδός) for more than one simultaneous burial.
During visiting hours, on Monday, October 16 at the evening, and on Tuesday morning, the bereaved son and brother, Theodoros Ramoundos and other relatives burst into tears, making even harder for the attendees not to cry.
Fr. Christoforos Economides urged the people attended to pray for the repose of the souls of the deceased and for the quick recovery of Jack Kalogridis and his aunt Betty Kalogridis.
He stated that he was among the first who visited them at the hospital. Their overall condition is improving after surgery day after day.
A family friend few hours after the deadly crush opened an account at www.gofundme.com, describing the decimation of the Ramoundos family and the need of the remaining family members to collect funds in order to proceed with the triple burial. The response was phenomenal. It surpassed the aim of $30,000 and reached $46.595 so far.
Ramoundos family photo.
The post All Cried at the Ramoundos Family Funeral appeared first on The National Herald.