Theodore "Ted" Pappas

Theodore N. "Ted" Pappas, 75, of Sioux City died Monday, Oct. 4, 2004, at Sunrise Retirement Community following a lengthy illness.

Services will be 2 p.m. Thursday at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, with the Rev. George Pappas officiating. Burial will be in Memorial Park Cemetery. Visitation will be 2 to 8 p.m. today, with the family present at 6 p.m. and a Trisagion service at 7 p.m., at Meyer Brothers Colonial Chapel.

Ted was born March 29, 1929, in Sioux City, the son of Nick T. and Kalliope (Kyriazes) Pappas. He graduated from Central High School in Sioux City. He attended the University of South Dakota, where he received his masters degree. He took graduate studies at the University of Salamanca in Spain.

He served in the U.S. Army as a sergeant during the Korean War, assigned to the First Calvary Japan Division. After his discharge from the military in 1955, he began his career in teaching in the Sioux City Community School District.

He married Katherine T. Athens on Aug. 16, 1959, in St. Joseph, Mo. The couple made their home in Sioux City, where they raised their two children. He taught English and Spanish for 38 and one half years at Central High School and North High School.

He was a member of both the Sioux City and National Education Association. He was an active member of Holy Trinity Church, where he served as a past board member, a Sunday School teacher, superintendent of the Sunday School and was choir director for 25 years. He was a 50-plus year member of the AHEPA. He also was a member of the Abu Bekr Shrine Temple, where he was a Shrine Chanter for 20 years. He was a 32nd Degree Mason and a member of the Tyrian Lodge 643 A.F. & A.M.

He loved to travel. He took students to Mexico and Spain through the Sioux City schools. He also made trips to Greece as director of AHEPA's "Journey to Greece Program" taking students of Greek heritage from the United States with him.

He is survived by his wife of 45 years, Kathy; a son and his wife, Nick and Nancy of Coto De Caza, Calif., and their children, Alexandra and Olivia; a daughter and her husband, Mary Kay and John Oostendorp of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and their children, Maci and Jay; three sisters, Bess Pappas and Mary Vlahoulis, both of Sioux City and Georgia DeWitt of Denver, Colo.; and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents.

Memorials in his name may be made to Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church Memorial Fund or Hospice of Siouxland.