Cornelius “Neil” Zayat

Funeral services for Cornelius “Neil” Zayat, 87, Lawrence, KS will be held at 11:00 a.m., September 24, 2016 at St. Matthews in Laurens, NY. Burial will follow at Laurens Village Cemetery in Laurens, NY. He passed away Wednesday, September 14, 2016 at Lawrence Memorial Hospital.

Neil was born at home on July 30, 1929 in Brooklyn, NY, the son of Demetri and Nuzli (Zogob) Zayat. He and his twin sister, Cornelia Hanna, were the youngest of eight children.

Neil was a very lovable, wonderful man who gave freely of his time and talents to serve and bless others. He never missed an opportunity to make someone laugh or build something special for them in his workshop.

He served in the United States Army during the Korean War. He attended the University of Tulsa in Tulsa, OK and completed a degree at the RCA Institutes in Manhattan, NY. He began his professional career working alongside his father in the Zayat Importing Co. A natural with people, he found his true calling as a salesman with the Beech-Nut company and later at Oneonta Auto Imports. He sacrificed greatly for his family giving up jobs he loved to care for his ill father-in-law. After he retired he spent over a decade serving at Woodside Hall.

He married Elise Margarethe Hansen January 2, 1965 in Laurens, NY. She survives of the home.

Other survivors include his beloved daughters, Elizabeth “Liz” Zayat, Lawrence, KS, Christina “Tina” Zayat, Cooperstown, NY; one sister, Eleanor Sleyman; and four sister and brother-in-law’s, Ginny Hansen, Honeoye Falls, NY, Karen Freiberg (Bill Kuiper), Catonsville, MD, Helen Sorenson (Joe Villafane), and Richard Hanna; and nieces, nephews, and their families.

Memorials may be made in his name to Evangelical Lutheran Church-general fund of Hartwick Seminary, NY and may be sent in care of the Warren-McElwain Mortuary.