Theodora Booras, the youngest of five children of George and Anastasia Booras, was born on April 3, 1926 in Sheridan, Wyoming. Her parents owned the Booras Super Food Market, a grocery store in which each of the children worked during their school years and beyond.

Theodora, who was known as "Teddy" to her family and friends, grew up to be a dark-haired, dark-eyed beauty who caught the attention of Harry Karakusis while she was visiting family members in Chicago. Fifty years later, he said to his grandson, James Dickens, "The first moment I saw her, I knew." They were married on February 9, 1947.

The couple took up residence in Sheridan, and they had three children, Georgine, Philana, and Peter. They lived and worked there until 1952, when they returned to Chicago. Harry and Teddy opened up their own grocery store, Holiday Foods. But, as Harry liked to say, Teddy was "the boss." She had a head for figures, and she managed both the store and Harry. In 1958, to their surprise and delight, the last of their children, Debra, was born. During "the Chicago years," Harry and Teddy started taking their children to the Rocky Mountain states for vacations to visit Teddy's family. Harry would paint a window-sized banner for the store that read, "Gone Fishing," and in the wee hours of the morning, after master organizer, Teddy, had packed all the family's essentials, they would start driving west.

They fell in love with Colorado and decided to move there in 1963. It was a challenge for Harry and Teddy to re-establish themselves, but they both worked very hard- Harry, for Safeway stores, and Teddy, for a china import company called "Flaxer-Paich," later known as "International China." Teddy began as a temp-agency employee and worked her way up to the Executive Secretary position. Her skill set of accounting, marketing, finance and administration served her well at Flaxer-Paich. After many years with the company, she retired, adroitly managing her stock portfolio before taking up another hobby- genealogy.

Harry and Teddy always loved traveling, both in the United States and in Greece, where Teddy, armed with her small tape recorder, started interviewing extended family members and uncovering fascinating, heretofore unknown facts about both sides of the family tree. From her research, she produced a book including all her discoveries.

In addition to genealogy, Teddy had two unflagging passions- food and her family. She was a true "foodie" before the term was popularized, and her cooking skills were justly praised by everyone who sat at her table. It was said that no one made a better Greek salad than Teddy, and few could rival her abilities with meats and vegetables.

Harry and Teddy frequently invited family and friends to parties held on their backyard patio, where plate after plate of delectable food was offered in abundance. True to her Greek heritage, Teddy was never happier than when the family gathered for a feast . In later years when she resided alone, she said the thing she missed most of all was not being able to cook for her family.

On August 26, 2012, Teddy suffered a serious stroke. She died on Wednesday, December 19, 2012.

Preceding her in death are her husband, Harry, daughter, Georgine Dickens, and son, Dr. Peter Karakusis.

Surviving her are her daughters, Debra Seedorf (husband, Ron) and Philana Quick (husband, Ray), son-in-law Tom Dickens (Georgine), nine grandchildren, James Dickens (husband, Kelly), Nickolas Dickens (wife, Victoria), Andrew Dickens (wife, Rebecca), Carolyn Quick, Edward Quick, Pamela Karakusis Smith, Timothy Karakusis, Greg Seedorf, and Stephen Seedorf (wife, Jennifer) and eleven great grandchildren: Rosie and Abigail Lardie-Dickens, Alexander and Mason Dickens, Brennan and Anyssa Dickens, Benjamin, Taylor, Jeremy and Olivia Smith, and Ella Seedorf.

Fairmount Funeral Home - Dec, 2012