Mark Marrano, Consul General of the U.S. Embassy in Athens, Greece, tries to help solve a mystery.
He hopes someone in Fayetteville’s Greek community can help him.
The mystery began with efforts to restore the statue of Harry S. Truman that stands in central Athens. Sculpted by Felix de Weldon, the same man who created the Iwo Jima memorial in Washington, the statue of the 33rd US president was unveiled in 1963 and is one of eight statues of former US presidents abroad.
Truman is held in high esteem by many Greeks for leading efforts to help their homeland after World War II, during the Greek Civil War.
But the 12-foot bronze statue has also been a frequent target of vandals and protesters over the years. It was toppled several times, bombed in 1986, and most recently covered in pink and red paint.
The U.S. Embassy worked with Athens Mayor Giorgos Kaminis to have the paint removed and the statue refurbished, Marrano said.
In an effort to raise awareness of the Truman statue among schools and organizations across the United States, embassy officials reached out to the Harry S. Truman National Historic Site, located in Truman’s birthplace in Independence. , in Missouri.
In corresponding with a technician at the Truman Library and Museum, another topic came up. It turns out that the technician had conducted some research without much success. He was trying to locate the relatives of a High Point man named George Nikolas Drakos, who had sent an oil painting of the Acropolis to President Truman at his Independence House in 1954, the year after that Truman left the White House.
“The painting has hung in the residence ever since,” Marrano said, “but why George N. Drakos sent the painting remains a mystery. The small plaque that accompanied the painting refers to George N. Drakos as a “faithful friend”.
Marrano says Truman later thanked Drakos in a letter sent to Athens in 1954.
Marrano believes he has traced Drakos’ relatives to Karpenisi, in central Greece.
“We also believe that George N. Drakos’ last name was originally Drakulakos and that he died in 1993 in High Point,” Marrano said.
Marrano hopes members of Fayetteville’s Greek community will have some clues. This is a real possibility, as the majority of Greek-Americans in Fayetteville can trace their family trees back to the “horios,” or villages, in the Evrytania prefecture in central Greece. Karpenisi is the capital of Evrytania.
Marrano said George Nikolas Drakos – or Drakulakos – was born in 1918 and died in 1993. His wife, Kathyrn V. Drakulakos, was born in 1922 and died in 2004.
It’s an intriguing mystery that we might be able to help him solve. If you think you have any information on Marrano, let me know and I will put you in touch with him.
Community News Editor Kim Hasty can be reached at hastyk@fayobserver.com or 486-3591.
