John E. Kutulas

John Ernest Kutulas, age 93, of Hartwell, Georgia, passed away peacefully at his home on December 19, 2024. 

Born on August 4, 1931, in Salt Lake City, Utah, he was the son of the late Ernest Kutulas and Ange Gianacopoulos Kutulas, who were both from Kandila, Greece, and later immigrated to the United States. 

He is survived by his son Ernest and his daughter-in-law Carolyn Kutulas of Richland, Washington; daughter Kalli Kutulas of Atlanta; son Billy Kutulas of Hartwell; granddaughter Melody Kutulas of Los Angeles, California; and grandson Ryan Kutulas of Richland, Washington. He is also survived by his sister Dena Leone of Salt Lake City, Utah; and sister Barbara Keller of Bountiful, Utah. 

He retired from the U.S. Air Force as a lieutenant colonel in June 1975. He then moved from Omaha, Nebraska, to Fort Worth, Texas, where he began a new career: teaching high-school mathematics. In 1979, he moved his family to Hartwell, Georgia, where he started teaching at Hart County High School. He became head of the math department in 1982, and also received a specialist degree in mathematics education from the University of Georgia that same year. For the math department, he taught a variety of classes, ranging from basic math to computer programming to calculus. As a teacher, he showed a great sense of humor, and his students found him very entertaining. He ended up teaching in Hart County for a total of twenty-three years before retiring in 2002, reluctantly leaving behind a career that he loved.  He retired with many fond memories of the students that he had the privilege of teaching over the years, as well as those of his fellow teachers and staff. While at Hart County High School, he received the honor of STAR Teacher in 1985 and 1986, both times picking up the additional honor of Ninth Congressional District STAR Teacher as well. He also received the Governor's High Technology Math Teacher award in 1993. In 1995, he was selected as Educator of the Year by the faculty at Hart County High School, and also received yearbook dedications from the senior class in both 1995 and 1999. 

In his spare time, John enjoyed jogging for many years, as well as working on his farm, keeping it looking immaculate. As a retired meteorologist, he was a big weather buff too. He was also an avid reader, and particularly enjoyed biographies and other books relating to the Civil War. He was really into watching college football to boot, and always eager to check out the latest weekly rankings. He was also a big fan of historical documentaries and classic movies. In addition, he had fun solving word puzzles almost daily, mastering crossword puzzles, jumbles, and cryptoquotes. Traveling was another activity he took pleasure in, as he thoroughly enjoyed visiting former battlefields and other historical sites. Furthermore, he loved the many homeless animals that he and his family had adopted over the years. 

His family would like to extend special thanks to Carol Segars, who enthusiastically helped with his care. And a heartfelt thanks to all those who prayed for John, for he accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior and Lord eight months before his passing. 

John will be laid to rest privately, with military honors, at a later date. 

Services have been entrusted to Coile and Hall Funeral Directors, 333 E. Johnson Street in Hartwell.