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Olga Nikolaras (Dres), age 87, of Crown Indiana passed away peacefully on October 27, 2025. She was born in Gargalianoi, Messinia Greece on June 2, 1938 to Phillip and Penelope Dres. Olga immigrated to Gary, Indiana at the young age of 18, where she began working as a seamstress at Arthur Wyner and Hart Schaffner & Marx. On November 29, 1969 she married the love of her life, Dimitrios Nikolaras. Over the years, Olga worked diligently to help immigrate over 30 people from Greece and Albania, including her siblings and their families.
Olga was a proud mother to her only son, John D Nikolaras and a loving wife and friend to all. Her grandchildren, Dimitrios and Maria Nikolaras were light of her life. She was a devout Orthodox Christian and active member of SS Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Gary and then Merillville, IN. Olga loved working with the Ladies of Philoptohos Society and the Chion Kanaris Agia Markella Society. She was an amazing baker and always provided great comedic relief in the company of friends and family.
Olga was preceded in death by parents Phillip and Penelope Dres, husband Dimitrios J. Nikolaras, siblings Kyriakos Dres, Panagiotis (Athena) Dres, John (Antonia) Dres, niece Penelope Dres, and nephew Stelios Kouskousakis along with many beloved family members who have passed on. She is survived by her son, John D. (Irene) Nikolaras, grandchildren, Dimitrios and Maria Nikolaras, siblings Sofoklis (Tenia) Dres, Eleni (Elias) Psihogios, Antoni (Maria) Dres, Angelo (Mary) Dres along with several nieces, nephews and cousins.
Visitation will be held on October 31, 2025 at 9:30 am at SS Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Cathedral, 8000 Madison St, Merrillville, IN 46410. Funeral services will immediately follow at 10:00 am with Fr. Dimitrios Burikas officiating. Interment will follow at Ridgelawn Cemetery.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the family who will donate the funds to Olga’s beloved childhood parish of Agios Spiridonas in her hometown of Gargalianoi, Greece. For further information please contact Mileva Savich at Calumet Park Funeral Chapel 219-736-5840.
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Yia Yia (she was every non-Greeks Yia Yia) was a shining light in so many lives. I am a neighbor of her son Yianni, and our entire neighborhood held her in a very high regard. She loved us all as if we were her own, she truly lived her life acting as the hands and feet of Jesus. She loved you, she fed you, and she’d tell you when you needed to “straighten up” :). We will miss her dearly.
Olga is a happy memory in our lives. We met her and her husband because our son he went to school with Johnny and they became great friends. We had a few meals at their home and we were treated as family, we were over fed each time it was wonderful. Olga expressed her love for others in everything she did. Now resting with God she has earned her reward. We thank God for the blessings she bestowed on us all.
My deepest sympathy and condolences to the family. Olga was always very warm and welcoming to us. She did the memorial trays for my brother and my mother when they passed on. May God rest her soul and her memory be eternal.