Obituary of Nicholas George Liristis

Nicholas George Liristis, 96, passed away at Spokane Veterans Home on May 25, 2016. Nick was born on January 11, 1920 in New Castle, Pennsylvania to George and Stella (Canova) Liristis. He had one sister, Anna, who died from bronchitis at less than 2 years old, and one brother Louis who was about 5 years younger. The family lived in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York. Nick joined the Merchant Marines in 1941. He worked in the engine room as an oiler. Nick had 19 tours meaning 19 different times at sea in harm’s way to bring needed supplies to ships at war. One time his ship was under fire close to shore, some went ashore to safety and some stayed on board. Nick stayed on board, they did get hit. He didn’t go into detail of what all happened. He told me a story of having a dog on board and the dog could hear missiles coming way before they had any warning. He credited the dog for letting them know ahead of time so they had time to prepare. Nick was awarded the Merchant Marine Combat Bar. After the war Nick held a variety of jobs, one was with the Howard Hughes Aircraft Company as an engineer. He eventually moved to Spokane, Washington and later moved his mother, Stella from New York to be near him. Nick’s ½ brother Louis, moved to California, married and had a family. Nick volunteered for Spokane’s Walk In The Wild Zoo as a maintenance man in the 1980’s. Nick stayed busy tinkering on everything from flashlights to TV’s. He liked to take apart anything electronic. He once showed me how he could even take apart a battery to “fix” it. He never threw away something he thought he could fix. He had an amazing way of filing papers in his “envelope” alphabetical system. Up until his later years he knew where he had filed everything. In 2013 Nick moved into the Spokane Veteran’s Home. He was not happy and missed his independence but he was well taken care of and made friends with so many other veterans. On Nick’s 95th birthday he was presented with a letter from Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers thanking him for his service in WWII as a Merchant Marine. Nick was a member of Immaculate Conception Church. A Rosary will be held on Friday June 3, 2016 at 9:00 am with a Funeral Mass to follow at 9:30 am at Immaculate Conception Church 614 E. 5th Ave. Post Falls, ID. Interment at St Joseph’s Catholic Cemetery 17825 E. Trent Ave. Spokane, WA. Bell Tower Funeral Home has been entrusted with arrangements.