Our family name is spelled “Gekis,” but my father signs his paintings  as “Gekas.” The reason lies in a clerical error made during his discharge from the Navy after World War II. The clerk mistakenly recorded his last name with “IS” instead of “AS.” When my father sought to correct the error, the Navy required him to provide a birth certificate. Unfortunately, the courthouse in Coshocton, Ohio, where his birth certificate was kept, had burned down, destroying the record.

Without a birth certificate, the only way to correct the error was to go through a legal name change in court. He decided it was too much of a hassle and chose not to pursue it. However, as a tribute to his heritage and the original spelling of our family name, he signed all his artwork as “Gekas.”

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