Obituary of Bill Zarokostas

It is with profound sadness that we announce that Vasilios “Bill” Zarokostas, 77, of Strathmore, Alberta passed away on January 16th, 2024, surrounded by his family.

Bill was born Sept.3, 1946 to Stamatios and Eleni Zarokostas in Leonidio, Greece. Bill was the youngest of 8 siblings. He made the bold move to Calgary, Alberta at the youthful age of 21 to embark on his fearless journey. He then met the love of his life (JoAnn) shortly there after. They were married for 53 incredible years. They had 3 children: Barry (Zabrina), Mike, and Jackie (Trevor). From there his family grew to include 9 grandkids: Brett, Marcus, Justin, London, Kennedy, Mason, Maxwell, Raina and Gabriel.

He was a pioneer of many restaurants in his hometown of Strathmore. Starting off with Villa Pizza which was followed by many more. Lots of the locals still refer to him as “Pizza Bill” and rave about it being the best they ever had.

He was a great man with an infectious smile and warmth making everyone around him feel like they were family. He was generous, kind, and gentle. Just the right mix of crazy and fun. His accent was undeniable and sometimes challenging to understand. Regardless, he was truly one of and kind and he will not be forgotten.

A funeral service will be held on Wednesday, January 24, 2024, at Hope Community Covenant Church (Strathmore) at 1:00 p.m.

To watch a live stream of the funeral service, click here.