Nicholas Marios Lycakis

Beloved husband, dad, and papou, Nicholas “Nick” Marios Lycakis (Νικόλαος Μάριος Λυκάκης), age 85, died December 21, 2025, in his Westerville home.

Nick was born on July 21, 1940, in Athens, Greece, the son of the late Marios and Persephone Lycakis. He graduated from Athens College in 1959, where he was an accomplished 100m runner on the track team.

In 1960, Nick immigrated to the United States to seek higher education. He received his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1963 and subsequently earned his master’s degree at Case Western Reserve University. He would later be naturalized as an American citizen in 1974.

Upon graduation from IIT, Nick moved to New York City, where he began his career as an electrical engineer at American Electric Power. In 1967, he relocated to Cleveland, where he worked at Cleveland High Voltage and Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company. In 1980, he rejoined American Electric Power at its new headquarters in Columbus, Ohio. He held various roles before retiring from AEP as Director of Special Projects in 2006. Nick also taught math as an adjunct professor at Columbus State Community College from 2000 until 2024.

While living in Cleveland, he met the love of his life, Nancy. They married on May 18, 1969, and began a life together, raising three children. One of Nick’s greatest joys in life was spending time with his family. He was a consistent presence at his grandchildren’s activities. He coached and refereed soccer. He enjoyed taking his family out for dinners, on cruises, and on vacations around the world.

Nick was a life-long learner, and he enjoyed discussing history and politics. He was a long-suffering but loyal Cleveland sports fan and enjoyed watching European soccer. He took great pride in his Greek heritage and passed along much of its food, tradition, and even the Greek root words—which he loved to explain—to his family.

He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Nancy; children Angeliki (Robert) Buehler, Maria (Duane) Soisson, and Mario (Misty) Lycakis; and his grandchildren Nicholas William, Alexis, Katerini, Eleni, Fia, Kyle, Jacob, Kira, Bailee, Nicholas Mario, Zachary, Arianna, and Finn.

Funeral service will be held on Tuesday, December 30, 2025 at 10:00am at The Annunciation Greek Orthodox, 555 N. High St., Columbus, OH 43215.

In lieu of flowers donations can be made to the Columbus State Foundation: https://csccfoundation.org/ways-to-give/