St. Gerasimos (died 1579) was born in the village of Trikala in the Peleponessus. On reaching maturity, he became a monk and studied on Mt. Athos. He set off for Jerusalem on a pilgrimmage, eventually becoming a candle-lighter at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The monk was ordained by Patriarch Germanos of Jerusalem to the diaconate and then the priesthood. He did not slacken on his ascetic practice of prayer, spending five years in solitude. He then went to the island of Cephalonia and founded a women's monastery. He lived in constant prayer on Cephalonia for thirty years.

It is said that for his exhalted life, he was given the gift of healing and of casting out evil spirits. He died peacefully on August 15, 1579 at the age of 71. When his grave was opened two years later, his relics were found undecayed and were posessed of curative powers.