Marina Cobb

Dr. Marina Farmakis Cobb, age 89, passed away on Sunday, August 19, 2007, in her Fresno home, following a non-operable pancreatic cancer condition. She was born in Mason City, Iowa in 1918, and was the daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. James Farmakis. As an Educator in Linguistics her accomplishments were many. Having graduated with Summa Cum Laude honors and Phi Beta Kappa at the University of Chicago and earning her B.A., M.A. and Doctor of Philosophy in the division of Humanities (Germanic Languages and Literature) with her PhD thesis on the Theory of Karl Philipp Moritz and his Conception of The Artist completely in German. Following a professorship at Wayne University and Marigrove College in Detroit, Michigan, Dr. Cobb served the Chief Counsel of the Nuremberg Tribunals as the Chief German Interpreter in Nuremberg, Germany in 1946. This included the notorious and famous Franz Von Papen Trial. Subsequently, the United States War Department sent her to work in Athens, Greece and London, England as a Special Research Analyst. This led to another professorship at Wellesley School for Girls at Wellesley, Massachusetts for three years, then joined the German faculty at Bradley University where she met her husband, Professor Kennedy Cobb, also a professor of Business and Economics. They were married in 1956, and moved to Pasadena, California. Her husband accepted a position at California State University, Fullerton. She then joined the Pasadena City College faculty where each of them stayed until their retirement earning the status of Professor Emeritus. They moved to Heathrow, Florida upon retirement. Her husband Kennedy preceded her in death in 1995. Marina stayed on in Heathrow until 2001 when she came to Fresno to be with her sisters, Niki Skodan (now deceased), Mrs. Evelyn N. Boosalis, and Mari Farmakis still residing in Fresno. Marina's contribution to further education was an example to many as she was a dedicated mentor for many young people and instrumental in guiding them along in their scholastic endeavors. She worked very closely with The Foreign Student Exchange and assisted and sponsored displaced persons to come to America and actually placed them in good homes. One of her proudest moments was when she brought over three cousins to the U.S. from Greece and gave them a place in the sun. She is survived by her sisters, Mrs. Evelyn N. Boosalis, and Mari Farmakis; nephews, Mr. Constantine Boosalis and his wife Vicki; and grand-nephews, Nicholas, Casey, and Cody Boosalis of Porterville, California; niece, Mary Helen and her husband Dr. Tom Olsen; great-grand nephews Benjamin and Nicholas Olsen of Dayton, Ohio, Mr. James Boosalis and his wife Carie of Reno, Nevada; nephew, Mr. David Boosalis and his wife Leah from Palo Alto, California; nephew, and godson, Matthew Boosalis of Dayton, Ohio; and sister-in-law, Mrs. Peter Farmakis of Chicago, Illinois. A Trisagion Service will be held at Whitehurst, Sullivan, Burns & Blair Funeral Home on Wednesday, August 22, 2007, at 7:00 p.m. A Funeral Service will be held at the St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Fresno on Thursday, August 23, 2007, at 10:00 a.m. with Fr. Jim Pappas officiating. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Sloan-Kettering Cancer Fund and the Greek Orthodox Church in Fresno. WHITEHURST Sulllivan, Burns Blair Funeral Home Fresno, Ca. (559)227-4048