Flora (Haniotis) Vekiarides, 88, of Needham, MA, formerly of Dedham, MA, passed away on December 3, 2020. She was born in Piraeus, Greece to the late Nicholas Haniotis and Pigi Karas on June 9, 1932. After growing up in Greece, Flora emigrated to Boston, Massachusetts in 1960. She came to live with her mother in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston and began a teaching career by leading Greek courses at the Boston Center for Adult Education. She married the late Paul Vekiarides in 1965 and they lived together in Boston's Roslindale neighborhood until 1988 before moving to Dedham, MA. Flora is survived by her son Lazarus Vekiarides and wife Anastasia, her son Nicos Vekiarides and wife Renee, as well as her five grandchildren: Paul, Julia, Anna, James and Andrew. Flora was predeceased by her loving husband Paul in 2012. Flora was immensely passionate about education, and made it her priority to teach the language, history, and culture of Greece. She worked for many years in the Greek Bilingual Program of the Boston Public Schools, but will be most remembered for her role as Director of the Greek School at the Greek Cathedral of the Annunciation in Boston. There, she spent nearly 40 years instilling an appreciation of Greek in the children of many thousands of first- and second-generation Greek American families. "Kyria Flora", as she liked to be called, will be remembered for bringing to life the Greek language, history, and culture for much of the Greek diaspora of the Greater Boston area. Flora was also abundantly proud of her family. She passes on her love of education to her children and grandchildren and leaves behind many wonderful memories. Funeral Service will be held on Monday, December 7, 2020 at the Gardens of Gethsemane in West Roxbury. Due to the current pandemic and the families' care and concern for family and friends, funeral services and burial will be private. Memorial donations in Flora's memory may
be made to Greek for Kids (donate online at Greek4kids.com) or Alzheimer's and Dementia
Research at Alz.org.