Joseph G. Apostol went with our Lord on July 7, 2011. He was born on April 20, 1939 to George and Georgia Apostol, both deceased. He was preceded in death by his sisters, Mary Powell, Kris Giannopoulos, his nephew, Jeffrey Giannopoulos, and his niece, Lisa Powell. He is survived by his wife, Libby Apostol, sister Fon Apostol, daughter Noelle Apostol, and nieces: Debbie Mustafoglu, Georgeanne Giannopoulos-Hyatt, Jennifer Young-Werchan, and nephews: Cliff Powell and Adam Young.
Joe was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, raised in the Saint George Greek Orthodox Church and graduated from Northeast High School in 1957. He immediately enrolled in Central State College at Edmond, Oklahoma, and graduated with a degree in Biology & Chemistry on May 30, 1963. He then went on to University of Oklahoma’s School of Cytology, and upon graduation, Joe went to work at Norman Municipal Hospital in Norman, Oklahoma.
In 1979,
Joe’s experience in his field landed him a position in Houston with MPC Laboratories. After serving several years with MPC, Joe accepted his first position of several in the Texas Medical Center at MD Anderson and worked there for nearly 10 years making many lifelong friends. He left MD Anderson in 1995 to manage the cytology laboratory for OGA Associates and later worked at Baylor College of Medicine. On April 30, 2005, Joe retired from his positions at OGA Associates and Baylor College of Medicine.
Joe was passionate about life and never met a stranger. He was very active in the Greek community, loved spending time with his family and had many fond and proud memories of his daughter, Noelle. Joe had many interests and talents – he had a beautiful voice and he had his own Greek band – The Ya’ssous, where he played the clarinet and danced. Prior to moving to Houston, Joe owned a nursery and landscaping business in Oklahoma. Later in life, Joe collected and sold antique furniture and loved restoring old stained glass pieces. In between work and all of his hobbies, Joe also found time to fish with his nephews.
In 2006, Joe was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. He battled this dreadful disease tirelessly, with a great sense of humor and with much dignity. Now that we have come to the end of Joe’s life on earth, his memory is buried deep in our hearts. Until we meet again, rest in peace my love.
A Funeral Service will be held on Monday, July 11, 2011 at 10:00 am at the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral, 3511 Yoakum Blvd., Houston, TX 77006. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the American Cancer Society.
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