KITTERY – The beautiful mother and matriarch of the Scontras family passed peacefully early Wednesday evening, Nov. 8, 2023.

Sophie Brelis was born March 7, 1931, in Newport, R.I., the third child and only daughter of Christos and Asimina Brelis. Born into the Great Depression, she was imbued with the importance of faith, family, tradition, and the necessity of thrift amidst scarcity.

Sophie attended Salve Regina College in Newport, R.I. and worked as a librarian at the Naval War College. During this time, Sophie met her husband, Peter Scontras, an Ensign in the U.S. Navy, in the fall of 1951 at the U.S. Naval Base in Newport, R.I. Their romance was love at first sight, and that love proved eternal. Peter and Sophie married two months later, on Dec. 30, 1951.

Throughout their 65-year marriage, they raised seven children in their home on Love Lane in Kittery, a home and yard Sophie adored and tended to in all seasons. She made the house shine at Christmas with each candle-lit window and hand-crafted wreaths. In summer, the white house was adorned with lilacs, forsythia, and aromatic shrubbery that she would tend to while taking an interest in the birds that nested on the branches. Inside, their home was always brimming with the smells of her famous dishes and confections, especially her whoopie pies.

In the 1970s, Sophie was featured in the York County Coast Star as an exemplar of the virtues, dedication, and hard work of motherhood during a time when many women were entering the workforce. She was a devout Catholic and active member of Corpus Christi Parish in Portsmouth, N.H., where she and Peter brought many to the faith through their teaching but, more importantly, by their real-life example and love story.

Sophie and Peter were great dancers. One summer evening, they placed second in a swing dance competition at Prescott Park, but they were even better Greek dancers. Dancing at the Greek festival in Portsmouth, N.H. and family gatherings. At day’s end, Sophie loved to gather around the kitchen table or in the yard to converse and reminisce with an ice-cold Manhattan in her hand. She would raise her glass, smile, and say in Greek, “Stin Yeia,” which means “To our health.”

Her fondest memories were of her family, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren gathering at Love Lane or the countless summer days at York Harbor Beach, where she loved to plunge into the cold Maine water. Emerging and declaring it “refreshing!” and that she had been “born again.” She body surfed well into her 80s. A friend recalled seeing her arrive for the first time at the beach in the early ’70s with all seven children in tow, radiating beauty and elegance.

Their mother personified the highest form of unconditional love, in Greek – Agape. As a mother and Yia Yia, she loved unconditionally and selflessly her entire life. She had a perfect love for her children; in return, her children had a perfect love for her. She will be missed.

Sophie is survived by her children, Andrew and Lisa Scontras of Honolulu, Hawaii, Christopher and Ellen Scontras of Cape Elizabeth, Stephen and Lisa Scontras, of Alexandria, Va., Maria and Jamie Gilman, of Kittery, Lisa and Tim Noonis, of Hampton, N.H., Tom and Kristen Scontras, of Eliot, and Dean and Dawn Scontras, of Ashburn, Va. Sophie has 11 grandchildren; and 12 great-grandchildren. She is also survived by her brother, Peter Brelis, of South Portland.

A funeral Mass is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 16 at 10 a.m. at Corpus Christi Parish, 98 Summer St., Portsmouth, N.H. All are welcome to attend and celebrate Sophie’s life.

Copy the Story Link