John Stefanos, The 'Willie Wonka' of Cupid Candies, Dies At 74

ORLAND PARK, IL — John Stefanos, the master candy-maker and owner of Cupid Candies died Sept. 26, the day before his Oak Lawn store closed its doors last month. Stefanos, of Orland Park, was 74. His obituary stated that he fell a little more than a month ago and had suffered from brain bleeds.

Stefanos was born May 5, 1946 in Chicago to the late Polyhronis and Pauline Stefanos. Polyhronisand his brother, Leo, were confectioners who immigrated to the United States from Greece during the 1930s, according to the company website. Polyhronis, known as Paul, started Cupid Candies in 1936; Leo went on to invent the Dove Bar.

For more than 60 years, Stefanos put smiles on faces and sweets in the mouths of children and adults alike. Stefanos got his start in the family business as a soda jerk. He became the company president when his father died. He was a master candy maker and introduced sugar-free candy to the Cupid line.

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“He always took great pride in his craft and his unique creations. Cupid’s of Chicago soon grew into a South Side favorite,” his family said.

The company operated several candy stores on Chicago’s South Side, including a store in Oak Lawn, which opened on 95th Street in 1956. After Stefanos' accident, he and his wife of 55 years, Elaine, made the difficult decision to close the Oak Lawn store on Sept. 27.

Cupid Candies was renowned for manufacturing quality chocolates, nuts, candies and ice cream from its factory on Western Avenue in Gresham. Stefanos leaves a legacy of the Cupid caramel apple, mint melt-a-ways, Turks and ice cream.

“He was a real life Willie Wonka that brought so much happiness and joy to all of his nieces and nephews and grand nieces and nephews and everyone that knew him over the decades,” his family stated in his obituary. “He is running and walking and telling his jokes in Heaven. May you rest easy in Paradise and May your memory be Eternal. You will never be forgotten.”

The Orland Park store, at 9420 W. 143rd St., will remain open, as will the Cupid Candies factory on Western Avenue in the South Side Gresham neighborhood.

Stefanos sold the historic 84-year-old candy factory on Western Avenue this summer to Stephanie Hart, the owner and founder of Brown Sugar Bakery in Chicago. Hart is keeping the company’s 20 employees who will continue to produce the all the ice cream and chocolate products Cupid Candies and cakes of Brown Sugar Bakery.

Services for Stefanos were held Oct. 1 at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Oak Lawn. Arrangements were by Orrico Kourelis Funeral Services Inc. The family requests donations in John’s memory be made to St. Nicholas.