Michael Georgiou was "a true modern knight, who served his fellow men and women in a most dedicated way, not only within his church, but in the wider community as well".
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The former Wagga deputy mayor died on the weekend at the age of 78.
Hundreds of mourners on Thursday attended his funeral at Wagga's Greek Orthodox Church, spilling into an adjoining courtyard.
Father Nicholas Scordilis told the service that his long-time friend had touched the lives of "his family and his many, many friends" in unique ways.
"All of us will keep those memories alive by sharing them with one another," Father Scordilis said.
"We are gathered here today to say our final goodbye to a devoted husband, an affectionate father and godfather, a true friend, an eminent and distinguished leader of our society, a successful businessman who with his integrity earned the trust and deep respect of people, and to remember that, in all his life, he was simply the gentlest, the kindest, the most generous and loving person you will ever know."
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Mr Georgiou was a businessman, former Wagga councillor, cornerstone of the Greek community, member of Wollundry Rotary and volunteer on many community groups, and people who knew him from all of those areas were at the service.
"We are gathered here today to publicly acknowledge the late Michael Georgiou's most valuable and unique contribution to our society," Father Scordilis said.
"While he served as chairman or member of many charitable organisations, he - since his young days - never ceased to serve various positions with the Greek Orthodox parish and community of Wagga.
"We are gathered here today to pay our last respects to one of the dearest members of our community, to an outstanding man, a man of the highest integrity, the pinnacle of our society.
"A man who deserves to be remembered as a dreamer, who all his life worked to build for his community and his city a better tomorrow. A man who until his last breath was an example to promote the best ideas among our society.
"We are all here because our lives have been touched by him. The longer you knew him, the more you realised how remarkable a man he was. How devoted he was to his family and how loyal he was to his friends.
"These days, in the society we live in, one of the highest compliments you can give a man is the most simple, and at the same time the most powerful thing to say: He was a good man."
Flags in Wagga's civic precinct flew at half-mast on Thursday out of respect for Mr Georgiou and a minute's silence was held during Monday's council meeting.
