George Drakoulias

George Drakoulias
April 1, 1934 - February 14, 2026
To all our friends and families, with heavy hearts, my brother and I announce the passing
of our beloved father, George Drakoulias. We could not have hoped for a better father or a
better man. He was married to the love of his life Alexandra (Aleka) for almost 68 years. He
was a loving father-in-law and a proud and devoted grandfather.
George was born in Parori, Sparta Greece in 1934 to an American born father
Epaminondas (Pete Drake) and a Greek mother, Georgia. He and his brother Dean
immigrated to the United States and went to Lowell Massachusetts and later Hot Springs
Arkansas. He worked tirelessly and learned English in order to make a better life in America.
His brother Demo and their mother joined them at a later time.
In 1958, on a visit to Greece, our father met Alexandra and it was love at first sight. Three
weeks later they were married and headed back to America.
They settled in Corona, NY across the street from the soon to be built 1964 World’s Fair and
had two boys, Peter and Jimmy. Later they moved to Bayside where they joined the Saint
Nicholas community in Flushing.
It is impossible to put a whole life into a few words. Dad worked so hard his entire life for
his family. He loved being a machinist for an aviation company. He often proudly pointed to
parts of airplanes that he built that were on display in museums.
Having the gift of gab, he was also a great salesman for his brother’s company Atlantis
Restaurant Supplies, and loved talking with customers.
In the end, he went back to doing what he loved best, being a machinist.
In his retirement he tended to his vegetable garden and backyard including his grape vines
and fig trees. He was also known as the mayor of the neighborhood. He knew everyone and
everyone knew him and loved him. Even on vacations in different states or countries he would
run into people that he knew and called them by name. It was an amazing gift.
Dad was a very faithful man, and had even considered becoming a priest. In the end, his
faith guided him and he instilled it in us as well. Always with a smile or a quick witted
comment he was sharp as a tack till the end. We will miss so many of his endearing word
mispronunciations that he unknowingly created. Dad‘s favorite sport was soccer which he
thoroughly enjoyed watching. In his youth, he ran track and was very happy that his
namesake grandson followed in his footsteps.
He is survived by his wife Aleka, his sons Peter and Jimmy, his daughters in law Evelyn
and Eleni and his grandchildren Alexandra, Charles (Efstratios), Jenny and George.
In lieu of flowers, the family would ask that you make a donation in his memory to St.Nicholas Greek Orthodox Shrine Church in Flushing NY

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of George Drakoulias, please visit our floral store.