Page 51 - SC Senior Living Guide

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Life in America “My mom still corrects my grammar in
“Everybody in America is under the public,” Nick Zervos said.
impression the streets are paved in MaryAnn attended Marshall University,
gold,” Zervos said. “What nonsense. The and is a retired teacher.
Americans were as poor as we were in
Germany, but it was the land of free- Michael graduated summa cum laude
dom. And I had one advantage. I was from WVU with a degree in mining
good with the English language.” engineering and a masters degree in busi-
ness administration. He was just 9 when
Trained as a meat-cutter, Pete Zer- his father died, and he always wanted to
vos initially took a job at the former grow up to make mining safe, his mother
Triangle Conduit in Glen Dale for $60 a said. Today he is president of Mission
week. The couple lived the early years Coal Co. in Johnson City, Tenn.
of their marriage with his mother in
Moundsville. Crystal graduated from the former West
Liberty State College, and publishes a
But Gerda Zervos wanted to move her senior magazine in Columbia, S.C.
growing family into a home of their
own. And by 1956, Pete Zervos had Matthew served as the Mountaineer
taken a job as a coal miner at $25 a day at WVU in 1986. Today, he manages a
to make this a reality. Lowe’s store in Canal Fulton, Ohio.
“We bought this house, we bought a car, Ted is the youngest. Also a graduate of
we had children, they went to college West Liberty, he teaches at Glen Dale
and we had everything,” she said. “But Elementary School and is the John Mar-
in the end, he was killed in the mine. shall High School wrestling coach.
That was the saddest part of it.” Gerda Zervos also has 13 grandchildren
Pete Zervos was 39 years old when he and five great-grandchildren.
was killed on Jan. 27, 1967 after being “All my children are intelligent, and
struck by an electric locomotive inside have good jobs,” she said. “I feel my life
the Alexander Mine of the Valley Camp was fruitful.”
Coal Company. At the time, the Zervoses
had seven children, ages 2-18. And she hasn’t forgotten about her friend,
Helga. The two have returned to Eutin
Gerda Zervos continued to raise them over the years to vacation together and
as a single mother, and all but the oldest meet with friends, and they continue to
child, Edna, would go to college. She said talk by phone on a monthly basis.
Edna instead wanted to marry young, and
she went on to teach fitness classes and
operate a spa in Steubenville.

Her oldest son, Nick, went to West
Virginia University and worked 44 years
in education. During his long career he
served as superintendent of Marshall
County Schools, and recently retired as
executive director of Regional Educa-
tional Service Agency 6 in Wheeling.