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Nashville, TN: Clergy, Faithful bid Farewell to Deacon Andre Zavalin

On Monday, June 3, the clergy and faithful of Greater Nashville bade farewell to Deacon Andre Zavalin, who reposed on June 1 after a long and serious illness. With the blessing of Metropolitan Hilarion of Eastern America & New York, Archpriest Serge Lukianov celebrated Divine Liturgy and led the funeral service for the newly reposed in St. Petka Serbian Church in Nashville, TN. Co-serving with Fr. Serge were Archpriest Christopher Stanton (OCA cleric), Archpriest Job Watts (rector of St. Nektarios Church in Lenoir City, TN), Priest Parthenios Turner (St. John Chrysostom Greek Church in Nashville) and Priest Aleksandar Vujkovic (parish rector).

Upon conclusion of the service, Fr. Serge relayed the condolences of the First Hierarch of the Russian Church Abroad, Metropolitan Hilarion, to Fr. Andre’s Matushka Elena and relatives.

Following the final kiss, Fr. Andre’s body was taken out of the cathedral and transported to Holy Trinity Monastery in Jordanville, NY for burial.

***

Fr. Andre was born on April 18, 1959 in the Alma-Ata (Kazakhstan) to Lyudmila Arstentevna & Igor V. Zavalin. He was raised in Kazakhstan until age seven, later moving to Kiev, where his brother Vyacheslav was born – keeping in close support with his family Fr. Andre’s whole life. He outstandingly graduated from school with a gold medal and continued his studies in Moscow, enrolling in the Moscow Engineering and Physical Institute and graduating from it, having defended his thesis on theoretical physics, which continued on his father’s work. He worked in the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow, here he met his wife, Elena, and they had two sons, Kyrill and Stephen. In 1998, Fr. Andre moved with his family to America in the city of Nashville, where he began working at Fisk University, later transferring to Vanderbilt University, but until the end of his life he continued to cooperate with Fisk University. In addition to working in universities, Fr. Andre also opened his corporation, Multipolarity Inc., in which he researched and patented an invention in the field of multipolarity together with Vasily V. Lensky. Fr. Andre was a talented scientist, a versatile educated person, and an excellent collaborator, leaving a lot of printed work.

At a conscious age, already with family, Fr. Andre was baptized. Before leaving for America, he and Matushka Elena were wed. The Orthodox Faith took an important role in life of Fr. Andre, and in addition to his professional career, he took an active part in Church life. Moving to Nashville was especially important for Fr. Andre; together with Priest Seraphim Scheidler, a community of the Russian Orthodox Church was formed, and in 2009, by the decree of Metropolitan Hilarion, the Nashville community acquired the status of the Orthodox Mission of St. Innocent of Moscow. In 2015, Fr. Andre completed a course of study at Holy Trinity Seminary in Jordanville, and was soon ordained a deacon at the Synodal Cathedral of the Sign in New York City. In recent years, after Fr. Seraphim’s repose in 2011, he led the mission and, as a deacon, participated in the divine services at St. Petka Serbian Church.

Fr. Andre had a bright and kind heart, which attracted his friends and acquaintances, he was open to people and new ideas, and always loved to try something new.

Memory Eternal to the newly-reposed Deacon Andre!

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Nashville, TN: Clergy, Faithful bid Farewell to Deacon Andre Zavalin - 06/03/19

(8 images)


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Eastern American Diocese | Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia