With no special attention he managed to teach his own parents English, gain admission to Boston Latin (which then, as now, was an exam school) and go on to the University of Pennsylvania.
He still laughs about Boston Latin, because in those days one had to take four years of Latin and ancient Greek. Ancient Greek was similar enough to modern Greek that he considered that, this time through, it was he that had a leg up over the other students.
He's still alive and laughing in West Palm Beach, AKA The Land of the Living Dead.
And a hard core conservative by-the-by. He managed to get his butterfly ballot correct.
LOL!! Greek is a tough language to learn. I was stationed on the Island of Crete when I was in the USAF and I was able to learn enough to get by but that was about all.
We have several Greek diners in downtown Dallas and I occasionally stop in one and attempt to talk to the owners in their native tongue. Sometimes I even get a free Gyro because I was on Crete and remember some things about Knossos.
People respect you when you respect them and their culture.