Maria Tzouma Schmalz - Obituary

aria Tzouma Schmalz, 67, a resident of Severna Park, MD for 23 years and previously of Greece, died on Tuesday, July 19 at Anne Arundel Medical Center after a nine month struggle with cancer. Born on August 24, 1954 in Ioannina, Greece to the late Alexandros and Sophia Tzouma, Maria earned an Associate’s Degree and worked at Westinghouse and Nordstrom’s as a quality control engineer. She was a member of Ss. Constantine & Helen Greek Orthodox Church where she was active with the Philoptochos Society. Maria was also active with the International Dance Council, where she continuously worked to improve her Greek dance skills. She was a Greek dance instructor at her church for more than a decade and was instrumental in leading her dancers in competition at the Greek Folk Dance Festival. She also enjoyed gardening. Maria is survived by her husband of 29 years, Steven Schmalz; her sons, Alexandros Lineberry of Houston, TX and Yiannis Schmalz of Severna Park; her sisters, Tula Pagonis of Mississauga, Canada, Ellie Debattista of Toronto, Canada and Theoni Pappagorgiou of Ioannina, Greece; a grandson, Noire Lineberry; two nephews, Dr. Kosta Pappagorgiou and Chris Pagonis; a niece, Sarah Debattista and a great-niece, Theoni Pappaagorgiou. Friends are invited to celebrate Maria’s life at the Kalas Funeral Home & Crematory, 2973 Solomons Island Rd., Edgewater, MD on Friday from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 pm. Funeral service will be held at Ss. Constantine & Helen Greek Orthodox Church, 2747 Riva Rd., Annapolis, MD 21401 on Monday, July 25 at 11 am. Interment will follow at St. Demetrios Cemetery in Annapolis. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the church or St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105. Condolences may be made online by visiting the link on this page.