"There won't be another one like him," longtime friend George A. Backus said about former veterans agent Peter E. Pappas.
Former Palmer veterans' agent, Peter Pappas, left, is seen with state Rep.Thomas M. Petrolati, D- Ludlow, last year. Pappas died earlier this week.PALMER - Peter E. Pappas was remembered on Friday for his generous spirit, his ability to organize just about anything, his commitment to fellow veterans, and his love of the town of Palmer.
Pappas, 87, passed away on Wednesday at the Holyoke Soldiers' Home. He had been living there only a week.
On Saturday, which would have been his 88th birthday, family and friends will be at his funeral service at Beers & Story Funeral Home. Calling hours are from 9 to 11 a.m., with a prayer service at 10 a.m. Burial will be at the Veterans Cemetery in Agawam at 9 a.m. on Monday.
"He was always a wonderful guy. I never heard a bad word said about him," Town Clerk Patricia C. Donovan said.
Donovan went to high school with Pappas' oldest daughter, Penny Scott, and had known him since she was a teenager. He loved to have his daughters' friends around, she said.
Later, they worked in the Town Office Building together, where Pappas was the veterans agent for 12 years, before retiring in 2003. He served on the first Palmer Town Council, receiving the highest number of votes out of all the candidates. He left the council in 2007, due to health problems.
Donovan said Pappas was known for his organizational abilities, whether it was ceremonies to remember the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, or Memorial Day, Flag Day and Veterans Day. He was good at getting people to volunteer, and to attend his many events.
Pappas donated American flags, obtained flagpoles, organized concerts, and more for Palmer, his adopted hometown and where he lived most of his life.
A World War II veteran, Pappas spent three years in the Army Air Corps, serving in the China-Burma-India Theater as a B24 gunner in the 436th bomb squadron.
He also served briefly as Ludlow's veterans agent, and was named Ludlow's Veteran of the Year in 2010. At the time, he was living at Keystone Commons assisted living facility, where he continued organizing events. One Veterans Day, he had citations drawn up for all the veterans living there.
He refused to let his age slow him down.
"Pete was kind of proud. None of us like to grow old," Backus said.
Pappas had two daughters, Penny Scott and Anita Pappas-Raposa. Scott said she adored her father, and will miss him.
Her father's many activities caused him to be away from home a lot when they were younger, but he made up for lost time when he got back. Her parents divorced after 27 years together, but she said she has many great childhood memories.
He was proud of his Greek heritage, and loved playing Greek music. And he loved to throw a party, she said.
"He loved to dance Greek. He was a fun guy and fun to be around. It will be hard for me to play Greek records," Scott said.
He was dedicated to the veterans, and to the Merrill L. Simonds American Legion Post 130, where he was a past commander, she said. Last year, he even went to the national American Legion convention in Milwaukee.
Running a diner wasn't enough for her father, who needed a larger arena. She described him as a "political and social animal." He also worked as a travel agent, and at the post office.
"His church was the American Legion," Scott said. "He was always on the move."
The last year was a struggle for him, as his health worsened. He had heart problems, and was exhausted, Scott said.
"He fought the good fight," Scott said.
George A. Backus, who knew Pappas for 65 years, from the days when Pappas ran the diner on Main Street, said, "Pete was always there when we needed him . . . He was very generous to the town of Palmer, and the students, especially. He ran many, many things for the Legion.
"There won't be another one like him . . . He helped an awful lot of people that he didn't have to help. He went out of his way," Backus, the Legion Post 130 chaplain, said.
Besides his work with the veterans, Pappas also was known for his acts of generosity.
He bought hooded pullovers for the Palmer High cheerleaders, after he saw them performing in the rain. He said at the time that he always had a soft spot for cheerleaders, as his two daughters also cheered for Palmer High in the 1960s.
He donated $1,000 to help athletes play sports who could not afford the new athletic fee.
When the Palmer and Ludlow high school football teams meet over the next 20 years for their annual Veterans Memorial Thanksgiving Classic game, the winner will receive a plaque and trophy, thanks to him.
Three years ago, he presented the girls and boys basketball teams with pullover jackets at a pep rally, and also gave plaques to the football players for beating archrival Ware that season.
Perhaps he put his life's mission best when he read a passage to the high school students at the pep rally that day.
He said, "I shall pass through this world but once. Any good things that I can do, or any kindness I can show to any human being, let me do it now. Let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again. What I do for myself will die with me. What I do for others will live forever."