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Archimandritis Vasilios Lokis
served 1936
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Fr. Lokis was a significant figure in San Francisco Greek history. Even though he only spent four months at Holy Trinity his actions
brought significant changes that affected the Bay Area Greek community for decades.
Fr. Lokis arrived in the United States on November 1, 1923. He was 28 years old. He was a brilliant speaker and he spoke Greek, Turkish, and
German fluently. We have no historical data from 1923 to 1931. In 1931, Fr. Lokis was assigned to St. Spyridon in New York City and served
until his arrival in San Francisco in 1936.
Historical background:
After 1921, there were two churches in San Francisco - St. Sophia and Holy Trinity. In 1928 St. Sophia (later Annunciation) moved from Hayes
& Pierce Streets to 245 Valencia, the Valencia Street Theatre site.
The community began to renovate the building. As a result they incurred significant debt. After the 1929 stock market crash & ensuing depression
their financial situation worsened. They fell behind in their mortgage payments and the Bank of Italy (later Bank of America) foreclosed in
1935. St. Sophia declared bankruptcy. The Bank of Italy charged the community $100 per month rent for the use of the property.
The community reorganized under the "The United Greek Orthodox Community of San Francisco, the Annunciation" in 1936. They became Annunciation
Cathedral. Annunciation quickly raised the money to buy the church back from the Bank of Italy. The parish council wanted a priest that was dynamic so that the
community would prosper. During this period the parish council became increasingly dissatisfied with their priest, Fr. Sypridon Spyropoulos.
They wanted another priest to guide the community through this difficult period.
Fr. Lokis arrived at Holy Trinity in 1936. Fr. Tsapralis was getting close to retirement. The intent was to have an assistant priest who would
take over after Fr. Tsapralis retired. Fr. Lokis wanted to unite the churches in San Francisco. Fr. Lokis believed very strongly that the two communities should be
together and he started a campaign to unite Annunciation and Holy Trinity. Members of Holy Trinity's parish council felt his speeches were inflammatory and
incited anger and rioting. The president of Holy Trinity’s parish council wrote letters and sent telegrams to the Archdiocese requesting his removal.
Holy Trinity's parish council filed a lawsuit (injunction) preventing Fr. Lokis from entering Holy Trinity property. Both churches took a vote
for unification in 1936. Annunciation voted for unification and Holy Trinity voted against it.
Annunciation and Holy Trinity wanted a new priest. Members of Annunciation’s parish council sent telegrams and wrote letters to the Archdiocese requesting Fr. Lokis. The lawsuit was settled and as part of the settlement Fr. Lokis was dismissed by Holy Trinity. Fr.
Lokis was hired by Annunciation as their priest. Fr. Sypropoulos moved to San Diego, where under his leadership, the San Diego church thrived.
Holy Trinity hired a priest, Fr. Dionysios Demmasianos, who was not affiliated with the Archdiocese. Fr. Tsapralis, who had been with Holy Trinity since the
beginning, moved to Annunciation with the permission of the Archdiocese. Over half of Holy Trinity's parishioners left and joined
Annunciation. It was the beginning of a very difficult period for Holy Trinity until the arrival of Fr. George Paulson in 1949.
Under Fr. Lokis' leadership Annunciation prospered. Fr. Lokis was a dynamic speaker and he quickly increased attendance. Within a few years
Annunciation paid off their debts and they started to renovate the facilities. During World War II, Greek War Relief events were held at
Annunciation. Anastasios Mountanos, the founder of the California Greek-language newspaper broadcasted weekly over the radio at Annunciation.
Other special events during the holidays were held at Annunciation. Members of the community recall Christmas concerts where the attendance
was so great that people stood outside in the street listening to the music.
Fr. Lokis wanted to become a bishop. He expressed this desire to prominent members of the Greek community. In Peter Boudouros' memoirs, he stated that
Fr. Lokis had every piece of clothing needed for the day he would become bishop. That day never came.
The only murder ever to occur at a San Francisco Greek Orthodox Church happened on August 22, 1943. Peter
Raftopoulos shot and killed Eddie Dafnos in the narthex while Fr. Lokis was speaking to the congregation. Mr. Raftopoulos suspected that Mr. Dafnos
was the reason why his wife divorced him. News articles regarding the event appeared in San Francisco newspapers on August 23, 1943.
Fr. Lokis left Annunciation in 1943 and joined the OSS (Office of Strategic Services), the precursor of the present day Central Intelligence Agency. One of our parishioners, who was in the
Navy and stationed in Washington DC, recalls Fr. Lokis reporting for duty. Fr. Lokis was uniquely qualified for this assignment. He spoke Greek,
Turkish, and German fluently. He left for Egypt and became a spy for the allies. After the war Fr. Lokis returned to the United States where he served
at St. Spyridon in New York City (1950-1953). Fr. Lokis passed away in 1953 due to a heart attack suffered while working at the church.
The information in this article was compiled from newspaper articles, oral history interviews, family letters, and church records. Questions regarding
this article? Please send the historical society an email.
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