A Greek artist killed in Wednesday’s tragic gas explosion in Harlem was the first of the eight dead victims to be memorialized Sunday.
Friends and family of Andreas Panagopoulos, 43, gathered at Joseph Farenga and Sons Funeral Home in Astoria to honor the “guitar god” who perished in the blast.
“He was such a special guy. Everybody knows that if you met Andreas, you would remember him,” said his wife, Lizette. “And once you met him, you would love him. I loved him so much, he was my first and only boyfriend in NYC.”
“He was a guitar god,” said longtime friend William Christie, 46. “Better than Carlos Santana.”
Christie said he and Panagopoulos played in bands on and off together. He memorialized his friend at the wake by playing songs on an acoustic guitar written by the fallen artist.