On a Friday night, March 5, NEIU hosted a life celebration for the late Effie Mihopoulos, who passed away on the 26th of January. The event, organized by Cathleen Schandelmeier-Bartels, was held in the Recital Hall with late arrivals standing along the walls, as a result of the room being too full.
The program consisted of a few of Effie Mihopoulos’ friends sharing comments and poetry to honor her. Among these friends was Dr. Carla Knorowski, Vice President for Institutional Advancement at NEIU; Josephine Lipuma, an award-wining filmmaker and David Hernandez, a renowned Chicago poet.
Another attendee and speaker was Cornelius Eady, the well-known writer and winner of the Lamont Prize for his “Victims of the Latest Dance Craze”. Eady attributed his successful career to Mihopoulos, who believed in him and published his work, calling her a “poetry angel.”
The event made it apparent that Effie Mihopoulos was a “poetry angel” for many, inspiring and pushing all of her friends to pursue their dreams and helping them publish their works.
“She was a wonderful person…She is the one who encouraged me to write my play,” said her friend Peter Bartels. Bartels, whose wife was hosting the event, prepared a musical piece to honor the Greek heritage which Mihopoulos was so proud of. There were also a number of performances given in honor of Mihopoulos, who loved the arts and frequently attended events at Northeastern. There was an entertaining performance given by two members of the Trapdoor Theater Company, as well as a dance performance given by NEIU’s own Ensemble Español. There was also a short film on Mihopoulos’s life created by Josephine Lipuma, an award-winning filmmaker.
The attendees often grew teary-eyed recalling fond memories of Effie Mihopoulos. “Effie was brilliant. She could read, write, and talk all at the same time; even I had a hard time keeping up with her,” Effie’s cousin, Catherine Valsamoulis, said laughingly.
Mihopoulos was a very involved and energetic figure at Northeastern. According to her friends, she had a hand in many of the arts events and attended all of the dance and music events at NEIU. For many years, she also worked as a Wizard at NEIU’s radio station 88.3 WZRD.
Effie Mihopoulos also founded the Andrew Mihopoulos Scholarship Fund in honor of her father. The organizer of the life celebration, Cathleen Schandelmeier-Bartels, has asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be given to the scholarship or the arts program at NEIU.