Maria D. Schreiber Spring Hill, Florida. It is with great sadness that we announce that Maria D. Schreiber, an active member of the Timber Pines community, passed away on January 31, 2019 after a recent diagnosis with lung cancer. She was 79 years old.
She is known by everyone for her kindness, pleasant nature and generosity. Maria will be lovingly remembered by her husband of fifty years, Bob Schreiber, her daughter, Susan (Bob) Cramer, her two grandchildren, Ellie and Jack, many nieces and nephews, extended family andgood friends. Her parents, Anastasia and Anthony Desillas, her stepfather Anastasios Yiatras, her brother Denny Desillas and her son Rob, preceded her in death.
After her parents immigrated from the western island of Zante, Greece, in the mid 1930’s, Maria was born in Sanford, Maine, on July 16, 1939. During her school age years, her family moved to Akron,Ohio, where she graduated from Buchtel High School, received a BA in Education with honors from The Ohio State University and a Masters in Education from Kent State University. She furthered her education by obtaining 30 credit hours towards a PhD in Psychology/Educationand LPC certification for the state of Ohio.
She married Bob in Akron, Ohio, in 1969. As Bob had a position with an international corporation, they lived in Europe for 2 1/2 years and Latin America for 6 years. When they returned to the UnitedStates, they settled in Akron, Ohio, where Maria had been a High School English/Drama teacher for 5 years, and then a Senior High School Guidance Counselor for 28 years.
She also became an assistant to the superintendent of schools in Medina, Ohio, for 2 years. As a counselor at senior high schools in Akron, especially Firestone Senior High School, Maria assisted over 600 students being accepted into major colleges and universities, including Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate programs. She touchedthe lives of so many of the students and parents with whom she worked!
Maria had a very interesting heritage. During a visit to the museum on the island of Zakynthos, her parents birthplace, she noted a coat of arms on a wall with her maiden name, Desillas. Reading themuseum’s “Libro de Oro” that was officially translated from French, she was able to trace her lineage back to the 15th century.
Here, Maria learned that she had been a descendant of the island’s saint, Agios Dionysios, (Saint Dennis). After retiring in Timber Pines in Spring Hill, Florida, in 2005, Maria enjoyed socializing with her friends and being active with the Tennis Club, Hellenic Club, and the Ladies Philoptochos Society. She also participated in golf, water aerobics, and bridge.
Being fluent in Greek and Spanish, she also taught Spanish for 3 years at Timber Pines. She enjoyed taking ocean cruises with her husband, visiting with her daughter and grandchildren in Connecticutand Georgia. She was a wonderful “Yiayia” to Ellie and Jack.
She was also a women of faith, and the Greek Orthodox Church was an integral part of her life. Maria was an exceptional kindhearted woman and we will always carry her loving memory in our hearts. May her memory be eternal!
A funeral service will be held at 10 AM on Wednesday, February 6 at Christ the Savior Greek Orthodox Church, 10401 Spring Hill Drive, Spring Hill, Florida 34608, with Father John Lazarek officiating. Viewing begins at 9 AM. Interment will follow at the family plot at Grace Memorial Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, donations are requested in the memory of Maria to Christ the Savior Greek Orthodox Church. The Schreiber Family has entrusted the funeral arrangements to Grace Memorial Funeral Home. To send flowers or a memorial gift to the family of Maria D. Schreiber please visit our Sympathy Store.
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