Thomas Pappas

Thomas Pappas formerly of Plainedge, NY passed away on February 13, 2026, at the age of 93. He is survived by Nora, his wife of 69 years, four children: Kathryn (Anthony); Steven Pappas; Joanne Pappas (Neil Lipinski) and Irene (Vinny); Nine grandchildren: Anthony (Shannon); James (Allison); Jenna; Jordan (Roy); Alea (Zack); Luc; Vincent (Lauren); Nicholas (Meagan); Michael (Evelyn). And 2 great grandchildren Anthony III and Santino.

Tom was born to Mary and John Pappastamatapoulos from Kalavryta, Greece. Tom was a Korean War Veteran who proudly served our country by protecting the Panama Canal. While serving he learned to speak Spanish fluently from the locals.

On the GI Bill he graduated from Long Island University and received his Masters from Columbia Teachers College. Tom started teaching History in 1957 in a rough school in Washington Heights, NYC. He said the students had already “knocked out four teachers in four weeks.”

He was so passionate about teachers rights that he joined with Albert Shanker who founded The United Federation of Teachers, UFT. In 1960 he was part of the first major teacher strike. Tom said collective bargaining was jokingly called “collective begging.”

In a 2010 tribute a colleague described Pappas as “earthy, graphic and ethnic” and said there is “elegance in his gruffness.” Tom described how his father came from Greece at age 11 and was a shoeshine boy exploited by his own people. He attributed this experience to always take care of the underdog.

For the next 40+ years he taught history and held leadership positions along with Sandra Feldman, Randi Weingarten, and Michael Mulgrew of the UFT. From his children, grandchildren, friends, and students to the secretaries he was truly revered and loved by all.

As a native New Yorker Tom was a lifelong Brooklyn Dodgers fan until the team broke his heart in1957 by moving to Los Angeles. That was when he became a diehard NY Mets fan.

Together Tom and Nora had a beautiful life, traveling, enjoying their family and so generously sharing so much including their beloved Montauk Point coop with all. He will be missed by so many.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital  https://www.stjude.org/