April 12, 1945 – July 5, 2025
Demetrios A. Julius, M.D. April 12, 1945 – July 5, 2025. We have lost an incredible man. Demetrios died unexpectedly of a sudden cardiac arrythmia, just hours after returning home from Greece. He was 80, but a strong 80. A true citizen of the world. He had a tremendous mind and heart.
His life journey began in Athens, Greece, though he grew up in Canton, Ohio from age 5 onward. He graduated from Western Reserve Academy, earned his bachelor’s degree in social relations from Harvard College in 1967, medical degree from University of Cincinnati in 1971, followed by residency in psychiatry. He married Janice in 1977, and they spent 19 months in Tehran, opening the first overseas mental health center for Americans, experiencing the Iranian revolution first-hand, and catching the last commercial flight out of Tehran before the arrival of Khomeni. He spent time at NIH, leading a team at the National Institute of Drug Abuse to develop naltrexone.
Demetrios dedicated 37 years of service to the US government, predominantly at the Veterans Affairs Health Administration. He and Janice moved to Richmond in 1979, where he served as chief of psychiatry at the McGuire Veterans hospital, starting their sleep disorders program. Separately, he opened the first fully accredited sleep center in central Virginia – the Sleep Disorders Center of Richmond, where he continued working in private practice until his passing. He was a professor of psychiatry at VCU/MCV and also held academic appointment at UVA. He also received the Distinguished Alumni Award from University of Cincinnati medical school.
He made friends literally around the world. His deep-rooted passion for international relations led him to take part in numerous conflict resolution meetings, traveling to Moscow in 1989, followed by trips to Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, both before and after the collapse of the USSR. He helped lead summits on Greek-Turkish relations, seeking to diffuse centuries of tension, as well as summits on Israeli-Palestinian relations.
One of his deepest passions was his connection with Mani, the wild region of southern Greece from which his father originated, and the birthplace of the Greek revolution in 1821. Victory Or Death is its banner. He was a great enthusiast of music, particularly rock and roll of the 50s and 60s, and an expert on the Beatles and the Byrds. He had a great passion for storytelling and oral tradition, much like the ancient Greeks. In his last years, he learned the great joys of becoming a papou. He was devoted to his family, and had immense love for his grandchildren.
He was predeceased by his parents, Aristides Julius M.D. and Katherine Bernardos Julius (of Constantinople); and by his granddaughter, Elaine. He is survived by his wife, Janice; his sons, Anthony and Aristides, their wives Nan and Mary Claire; his sister, Olga; and brother-in-law, Emilio Margaritis; his grandchildren, Adrian, Abigail and Nicole. He was a truly unique, special man, and we will miss him terribly.
