Obituary of James A. Papapanu

Syracuse/Webster: Saturday, January 5, 2019. Jim was born in Rochester, NY and grew up in nearby Webster.  His family ran the Webster Candy Kitchen, a landmark meeting place in that village.  He attended Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute during World War II and joined the Army Air Force in September 1945.  Jim served in the Pacific, at Nielson Field near Manila.

While in college, Jim met Sophia Semon and they married in 1946.  After his military service, he returned to RPI for graduate work.  He then went to work for Carrier Corporation, Syracuse, NY, in the Research Department and spent his entire 38 year career with that company.  He learned Fortran computer programming, developing programs to analyze and model performance of various industrial refrigeration products.  Along the way, he was awarded ten US patents.

Jim and Sophia spent all the rest of their lives in Syracuse, raising a family and enjoying retired life.  Jim had a life-long fascination with trains and made lovely ink drawings of the steam trains he watched during college.  He also was an early hi-fi enthusiast, enjoyed photography and helping Sophia with her glassware hobby, which grew into a small business.

Jim was predeceased by his wife, Sophia, and one sister, Alice LaGrou.  Survivors include two children, Steven (Carol) and Carolyn Thompson (Alfred), two sisters, Mary Pantas and Nancy Papapanu (Bruce Winters), one brother, Michael Papapanu (Janice), five grandchildren, five great-grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews.

Relatives and friends may call on Thursday, January 10, from 3-6 PM at Willard H. Scott Funeral Home, 12 South Ave., Webster, NY.  A Trisagion service will be held there at 5 PM.

The funeral will be at 11 AM, Friday, January 11 at Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, 962 East Ave., Rochester.  A mercy luncheon will be held in the church hall immediately following the funeral service.  Interment will follow at Webster Rural Cemetery, 1087 Ridge Road, Webster.  In lieu of flowers, memorials to the charity of your choice or to The Jewish Home of CNY, 4101 East Genesee St., Syracuse, NY  13214.