Spero Zappas Obituary

I sure to miss hearing, "Love from the Greek."

Still think of you everyday. I sure do miss your smile and your laugh.

Still miss your stories and your laugh, Uncle Spero.

Always in our thoughts. Rest easy. Take care of our family.

Another year has passed. Your memory lives on in our hearts. Until we meet again, rest easy. Blessings

Spero visited me in a dream the other day. It was good to see him again. He told me to tell everyone that he is doing great and that he misses all of us.

Another year has passed. You are loved and missed by all who knew you. Take care of our family....

Went to search for Facebook since it's been many years and sadly found your obituary. It saddend me but then I remembered the many many great times we had always remember you rest in peace buddy

Hey, Spero...you and I were right all along.
We made a good call early on and I will never regret it.
We were lucky to leave the others behind. Vegas was always home and our family. Miss you, Spero. We could have some great laughs.

Oh, Brother, where art thou?
MIssing you every day.

missing you much love your cousin, I keep your memory alive forever!
R.I.P.

You will be in my heart always miss you so very much!

Still miss you, Uncle Spero!

Its been 3 years and i still miss u like it was yesterday.i lost 2 good friends in 2009 and i miss you both dearly. Its been a long road. And no spronz i wont let them talk about u. Ha ha love u guys

Medigon

Your memory will live in my heart forever. You were such a true friend to those you loved. Thank you for touching my life. We love you Speedo...

I was just home in Joliet for Thanksgiving... wishing to see your face, and hear your voice-like I did on so many of my visits. Missing you always!! Carrie

thoughts of you always in my heart
loving you.
RIP my dearest cousin

Always in our hearts,
Beba, Steve, Kristi, Peter, Linda, Katie, Alex, and so many others.

missing you still you are in my heart forever

love always

Miss you,
Spoebena Spobo

Wishing you were still here I really miss you Speedo so much Happy belated birthday love you and miss you always

You will always live in our hearts and prayers.

missing you always happy belated Birthday

Gone to soon missing you always happy belated Birthday

Spero, Spero, Spero...

Happy Birthday, Spero!

It's is a special day today and you are in my thoughts. I love you.

Gone way to soon we love and miss you Theo Spero

Missing you still thinking of you every day with all my heart.

spero, who would of ever known that peter would join you on dec 28th. please help him to be at peace---cindy gonzalez p.s. you were peter's best friend and i want to thank you for all your support you gave to peter his family during those past 8 years.

Spero, I can't believe I missed you like this. You were one of my dads best friends- I hope you are both laughing it up in heaven now together.

Speedy,
I will always love you. I can't imagine the world with out you. You will be in my heart forever. See you on the other side.

The Duece

Spero,to a Great guy and more so a great friend. You always had a story that would brighten anyones day. You will be truly missed, until we race again. Your friend Rick Peterson

Spero you where a great work body and friend and the stories will live on forever and ever R I P

Spero my friend and partner for a long long time sorry it tuck me so long but i was unable to write i will always love you and i will remember aur good times together i will miss you so much my friend RIP

Spero was a good man and will remain a legend in my mind.A bigger man than many believed. I will miss him and will always give him the respect he deserved. He was truly one of a kind and will be missed.Man!Could he tell a story. To my dismay most of them were true.R.I.P. My friend James Dean has to be looking at you with AWE!

I will truly miss you cuz,thanks for your love.
Mary Florence

He was my friend and I will miss him..

Jim Garthe

You were an amazing friend to my father, he considered you his brother. you stayed by his side when all his other friends left him. i didnt know you that well but i still cant believe you are gone. RIP. Peters Daughter.

"I remember lots of things, an still I remain shocked"

"I remember a lot of things. An, still I remain shocked from all of this"..

Spero Zappas may your wonderfully unique soul RIP !!! You were the last of a vanishing breed... I will never forget your tales and joy for life... I will miss our talks and your incredible energy!! You left us doing what you loved... so I have no regrets...It was just much to soon. RIP my friend I will NEVER FORGET YOU.

Spero Zappas may your wonderfully unique soul RIP !!! You were the last of a vanishing breed... I will never forget your tales and joy for life... I will miss our talks and your incredible energy!! You left us doing what you loved... so I have no regrets...It was just much to soon. RIP my friend I will NEVER FORGET YOU.

Speedy u were a good freind to my dad and wenever us kids would go over there u always greeted us with a smile..we will always miss u and keep u alive in our hearts...

jasmine....(rickys daughter)

Prayers be with you Ms. June and to family and friends !!!!

speedy Im going to miss racing you,you were one of the best racers I knew

Spronz,
You always made coming to work fun, and all the guys could always count on you to make 'em laugh. Thanks for all the memories and great stories, you will be missed on the docks.
Ron Kazanow- Teamster Brother

Spero, you gave me the first, the best, and the most important thing in my life, Kenny. I will love you "til the end of time" for this gift.
Georgi & family, so sorry for your loss.

Dear cousin Spero,
May the Lord Bless you and keep you in his arms. I remember you as a youngster, and the smartest little child in Reseda, CA. You will be in the
arms of Inez & John and Aunt Julia who
loved you dearly.
Love from your cousin,
Eva (Mantas) Polydoris

Spero
I only knew spero for 3yrs or so but he was a great person and great to me. all the stories alway wanting things to be faster. we enjoyed the same hobbies. the last time i was with him he brought the solstice to my friends restaurant to show it off. the story i will remember him for was you could take the cars, bikes, jetskis away we will go mark a line in the street and i will beat you on roller skates.

R.I.P. spero

hey "Spronz" you better have your log book filled in properly if you want to continue on your journey...ahh never mind I'll fill it in for you.

Dear G.O.D.
Zappas is 100% compliant, D.O.T.

My deepest sympathy to your family and to all that knew you.

Spero you were many things to many people. To me you were a kind soul. You welcomed me into your heart the minute Juan introduced me to you. You told me your jet sking stories over and over again. Everytime you relived the glory of victory. I will miss your laughter the most. It was heart felt and contagious. The pain in my heart will not go away soon. You were a part of our lives and you will be missed. I wish we could just have one more day. One more day to hear you laugh, to see you laugh so hard the tears just roll down your face. One more day to hear you tell us "you can look at the cars but don't touch the paint". I will miss you whenever we go to the river that you loved so much. I am glad that you shared your life with Juan and me. God bless you my friend until we met again.

Lifetime relationship teach us lifetime lessons, things we must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation. Our job is to accept the lesson, love the person, and put what we have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of our life. It is said that LOVE is blind but FRIENDSHIP is CLAIRVOYANT.

CHRISTINA & JONNY,
I'm very sorry to hear of your Grandfather passing. I met him only once or twice but know how much both of you meant to him. All my love & prayers are with you.
Love,
A.G.

Spiro, you've always been a good friend to me .As our friendship grew, we became brothers, who loved each other for the 30 years we were friends. i will always miss you and you will always be in my thoughts and heart. and for cindy, shaun, and rachel you have been their for them in good times and bad. thank you for helping cindy through the difficult time she has dealt with since my injury. she will will have lost her buddy to laugh with and cry with.we all love you very much,and it won't be the same ever. god bless you spero, you are the best and that will continue in heaven. peter gonzalez family

Spero, my good friend I will miss you and all the good times we had can never be forgotten. RIP Mikey Z.

Spero was absolutely hilarious! He shared a love with my niece that was so real and cute to see. My daughter will miss your delicious buttered noodles and I'll miss your stories!!!!

Glad to have you as a part of the family....The Gants

Beba, My thoughts and prayers are with you in your time of grief. May your memories bring you comfort.
Many fond memories of Spero and your wonderful Mom and Dad
.
Cousin
Angelo Manolis

June,

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Matthew 5:4

Love,
Paula, Vaughn and Verrick

Spero was quite a character and one of the most interesting and passionate men I've ever known. His great energy, spirit and dynamism was contagious.
He drew you into his stories and philosophical oratory. He made you ponder, he made you laugh, he reminded you, LIVE LIFE!

Irreplaceable . . . Spero, you will be missed.

Righteous! That is the word that comes to mind when I think of you Spero. I have been fortunate to have spent a great deal of my time in the film industry, working and laughing next to some incredible people, and, my friend, you are one of the most! The code that you lived by should be an example to us all. Whether explaining one of Newton's law's, or how to squeeze another couple of MPH from whatever machine was at hand.(Including the Ice Chipper). We solved a lot of problems on those Movie Sets, the real ones and the philosophical ones, the global ones, and the local ones. You were always quick to sacrifice for others, and never gave a second thought to your own inconvenience. You will always conjure up a huge smile (not as huge as yours though), every time I think of you, and who you must be hangin' with right now. Heaven will never be the same!
We will miss you!
May The Blessings of the Universe Rain Upon You!
Happy Trails,
'Till we Meet Again!
Peace

I love You Spero and I miss you.
I was waiting for spring so we could go to the car shows.

Love,
Mecca

I love you Spero



Little jumpin up and down

I LOVE YOU BABY



JUNE

Spero,
I love you with all my HEART. You were the best,I will miss YOU


LOVE
JUNE & The Twins

Speedo, you are the greatest. I will never forget you. Since I was a little girl you have always been there for me and our family. You are a legend. Always ending our conversation with "love from the Greek" and so compassonate about your "Little friends". You will be greatly missed by us all. In my prayers you'll be...until we meet again. Thanks for everything you've ever done for me. I love you with all my heart.

June,

My thoughts and prayers are with you in your time of grief. May your memories bring you comfort.

Love,
NANA

Greek, I am very glad that we had a chance to talk just the other day. I really enjoyed the car talk with you. I don't know why I stopped by to see you, on that day, but I am glad that you were home and we were able to chat like old times at the shop. I wish that we could have met up like you wanted to and have that Z-06 VS. LS7 solstice face off..... We will one day brother. You will be missed....... Rest in peace..... Z

I have known Spero several years and I wish that I met him sooner. He truly cared about me and what was going on in my life. I'll never forget the day that he met my mom and told her, "You did a great job in raising such a wonderful son." My mom reminded me of that just the other day as a matter of fact. I have never met anyone that had such passion and energy. I always described him as "the oldest 18 year old that I ever met". Anyone that knows Spero... knows how he tells stories. The animation, the sound effects, the description... unreal. We have lost quite possibly the best story teller this world has ever known. I hope that I can have his passion and energy in my later years like he did... anyone that knows Spero... he did not act his age. :) What a zest for life! I will miss talking about the next plan of attack for the cars. I will miss jet skiing with him. I have never seen another 63 year old man get upset when his jet ski wouldn't go 85 mph on a particular day. So he would work on it until it hit 85 mph... and the smile on his face after that was priceless. He would always end the conversation, "Love from the Greek" and you know what... he meant it! Love ya too, Spero! Yes you are gone... but you will NEVER be forgotten!!!

Thank you for the wonderful ways you welcomed us as family. Our memories of you, will always be full of life and laughter. We'll always remember "The Greek" stories of being a Spartan. And positive thoughts of studying hard,("the importance of math is to be able to count your own money!")
My brother and I wish, we had one more day to say, thank you. May your peace be found at the feet of our heavenly Father. For once it is us saying, "love from your cousins," Carlos & Christian - we will never forget you. zoi se mas

Spero;
Everything is forgotten. Its just like it was before. Say hi to derose and my mom and dad. I LOVE U WITH ALL MY HEART!!!

Medigon

You have changed my life forever thank you Spero for the 26+ years we have been friends until the day we meet i always will remenber you my great friend.Love always.!!!! Jim & Damien Ceci

The first time I met Spero was the first day I drove the water truck for Sam Barkan. He got in my face and screamed at me for something stupid I was doing. Later that day, he got in the truck with me and spent over an hour explaining how things "work" on a film set in Chicago. I had just moved back after working in LA for ten years. At the end of the conversation, he handed me his phone number and said, "714 & 476 are family - welcome my brother!" - Ever since that day, he backed up those words with his actions. He was so many things to so many people without EVER being anything but himself. I'm honored to be able to call him my friend.

Please accept my deepest sympthies on your tragic loss. Spero was a great friend and co-worker. He will always be remembered for his colorful stories and beautiful mind.

Dear Theo Speedo,
I feel so sad to lose you I will miss your voice I will always remember the things you said to me on Sundays when we talked.Bye from the little guy.
R.I.P.Theo Spero
Alex

My dearest cousin Spero,
I will miss you with all my heart.
We loved you dearly. May the lord take you into his arms heal your body and may you rest in peace. You will always be in our hearts and in our prayers.
Your cousin
Mary Florence

A great guy and a great Teamster.You will be missed.

Georgi,Steve,Kristi Peter,
So sorry to hear of the loss of Spero. He was a very colorful person with a heart of gold. He will be missed by many and what a tragedy to lose him so suddenly. My thought and prays are with you.

Dearest cousin Spiro,
I will always remember my summer in Vegas with your family. You and I ate bologna sandwiches every day and I have wonderful memories of Amherst Lane. Too bad we lost contact with you, but you will always be in our prayers........Love, Toula

Thanks for all the great memories buddy. You will surely be missed by many people ,some who will never know your many talents. I will personally miss all the good times we had together. RIP my friend.

“Love from the Greek, and give those beautiful babies a kiss from their Uncle Spronge!” That’s the way every one of our phone conversations ended. If only to hear those sweet words just one more time…

Stinky, Makai, Brown and Mischief meant the world to Spero – they were some of his best friends and he cared for them deeply. And he did love my babies too, as much as I do love his. Stink, Kai, Brownie & Lil’ Missy – if you little ones ever need ANYTHING please don’t hesitate to call your Uncle World and I’ll be there so fast you’d think your dad was driving me to you!

Fight Nights just won’t be the same anymore without you buddy. I’ll miss our pre and post fight conversations, the analysis and most of all the laughs we shared. I’ll miss meeting you at the Denny’s parking lot off of I-55 early on Sunday mornings to give you DVDs of the big PPV show you missed the night before because you were at McCormick Place, on a movie set or working a concert at the United Center.

Some people think that the most interesting man in the world is the guy in the Dos Equis commercials. Those of us lucky enough to call him our friend know that Spero was the inspiration for that role. I’ll never forget watching Jeopardy with him and him totally destroying me as well as the contestants on the show. When the credits started rolling he turned to me and said “I wonder what kind of odds you’d get by betting on a teamster against 4 college-educated professionals?”.

June, I can’t put into words how sorry I am for your loss too. Know that he loved you and still does.

My deepest sympathy for a cousin I remember fondly. Although we drifted apart I remember the times he would visit us from California and Las Vegas and I would take him for beef sandwiches and shopping sprees. The last time I saw him was several years ago at my uncles funeral. I gave him my phone number but he never called. May he rest in peace.

His loving cousin,

Betsy Heotis

“Love from the Greek, and give those beautiful babies a kiss from their Uncle Spronge!” That’s the way every one of our phone conversations ended. If only to hear those sweet words just one more time…

Stinky, Makai, Brown and Mischief meant the world to Spero – they were some of his best friends and he cared for them deeply. And he did love my babies too, as much as I do love his. Stink, Kai, Brownie & Lil’ Missy – if you little ones ever need ANYTHING please don’t hesitate to call your Uncle World and I’ll be there so fast you’d think your dad was driving me to you!

Fight Nights just won’t be the same anymore without you buddy. I’ll miss our pre and post fight conversations, the analysis and most of all the laughs we shared. I’ll miss meeting you at the Denny’s parking lot off of I-55 early on Sunday mornings to give you DVDs of the big PPV show you missed the night before because you were at McCormick Place, on a movie set or working a concert at the United Center.

Some people think that the most interesting man in the world is the guy in the Dos Equis commercials. Those of us lucky enough to call him our friend know that Spero was the inspiration for that role. I’ll never forget watching Jeopardy with him for the first time. He totally destroying me as well as the contestants on the show. When the credits started rolling he turned to me and said “I wonder what kind of odds you’d get by betting on a teamster against 4 college-educated professionals?”. Trust me, that show wasn't a fluke - he regularly beat the official contestants.

June, I can’t put into words how sorry I am for your loss too. Know that he loved you and still does.

Rest in Peace, Spronge and love from the Irishman!

25+ yrs was a great run friendship my pal ....Can't believe you left without saying goodbye. My heart is breaking....I will forever miss my friend So much. Never forget "LOVE FROM THE GREEK" I can still hear the words roll off his lips as he kissed me goodbye and I walked away the last time I saw him. I will remember him always till the day I go meet him again.
Most heartfelt love, prayers and condolences to his family and the rest of his friends. Mere words cannot describe what we all feel.

SPRONZ YOU ARE THE BEST R.I.P. THE TEAMSTERS LOST A GREAT BROTHER BUT LEFT A LIFE FULL OF MEMORIES!!! (THE GREEK)

Thank you for being a good friend. I will miss the times we shared the soup at Rodity's and all your friends from Greektown calling you "the Mayor." I'm sure God is ready for some new stories. I will miss you,

We will truly miss you Spero. You were a, "One Of A Kind." There is no other - Your animated stories, your laugh, your love of cars, and your zest for life! May your angle wings set you free to fly..... Our condolences go out to all the family members.

He was a good friend. Big love, big opinions, big passions, big creations. He is missed. Our deepest condolences go out to his family and close friends.

Spero was one of my favorite clients and a friend as well. His zest for life and vitality were an inspiration for us all. He will be missed.

Hey, Speedo...Your firiends are amazing and I know you are getting the last laugh on all. The guys are taking great care of me, as you instructed them to do. Rest easy my brother and kiss mom and dad.
Always in my heart, Your loving Spobena! (Beba)

My heart felt condolences to all who loved a cousin I shared some very pleasant memories with back in the 50's. S was the first person I ever knew who lived in California, so very distant from the old Chicago neighborhood we came from.
Our parents were brother and sister who loved each other very much, and although years and geography have separated us all, I feel a deep loss. I only wish our extended family can be reconnected.
Love from
Maria Manolis Henely--

Speedo, Speedo, Speedo, you lived every day to the fullest.......Jesus IS what it's all about. I'll remember......Peace, Linda

i am sorry about your lost me and my boys will miss him as a friend bridgett william cody cottrell and donald ellis

I keep searching for the words. Spero was an incredible person, a giant personality, a unique character that I feel so blessed to have known for close to thirty years. During vacations to Mexico or working incredibly long hours together we shared laughs and memories that I'll treasure forever. The world has a big hole in it without him, he cast a giant net that embraced people from so many diverse backgrounds and made our lives so much richer by his presence. Sitting on the couch with him once a long time ago he showed me a hot rod magazine article and said the builder should do something different, next thing you know he's phoning Texas and explaining in engineering terms his idea and I can hear the builder realizing that Spero has just created more horsepower in a car this man had published in a national magazine, call ends and he answers correctly the next ten questions on Jeopardy. Spero was one (if not the most) honorable man who let you know how he felt on any subject without waffling or trying to be p.c. Over the years we both raced at a Blackhawk with different cars and clubs but talking with him it was like we were on the track together going through the esses side by side. Each time he got a new car or rebuilt an engine he would take me out and next thing we were testing the laws of physics. Later on two feet Spero would be recapping our adventure and my life was never as exciting, so much detail that I would have missed he was able to recall and articulate that listening made me understand how wonderful life was. Spero was always sharing his memories of life in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, the road, and Joliet telling me little details of life with his parents, the restaurant, the wolves, a life well lived. I will miss him so, my heart is broken but I try to comfort myself knowing that he passed living life on his terms. Just the other day I saw a "The Spronz is Good" written on a wall and a smile came to my face. God rest the soul of my good friend Spero and may all who knew him count their blessing in knowing him.

YOU will be missed by all. love you buddy. watch over me when you get a chance.

You forever changed my world!!! I hope your children will one day know, what a great man, and gentle soul you were! I think every conversation we had I hung up, proud to be Greek, American and loved. I can still hear you end every conversation or letter, "love from your cousin, Spero" and it still breaks my heart to know you're gone. Thank you for everything, I will cherish all the stories you shared..and all the memories you gave me! May your soul find it's eternal rest.
Love from your Cousin, Carrie