Obituary of Despina Veloudos

Despina "Tess" Veloudos peacefully passed away on August 7th, 2021 and was surrounded by her children, grandchildren and great-grandson during her final days. Her family and her church were her life, she was so dedicated to both. Despina is survived by her three children, Valerie (and Ted) Vittas, Joanne (and Simon) Jackson, and Alex (and Penelope) Veloudos, and 8 grandchildren John, Ari, Vasili, Alexandra, Christina, David, Faith & Georgio, and great grandson Yianni. She is predeceased by her three brothers Van, George and twin brother Gus who just passed away in April. Born in Brooklyn, NY, Despina grew up in Franklin Square, NY and raised her family in Oradell, NJ. She was an active member of The Cathedral of St. John the Theologian in Tenafly, NJ. Despina lived the last 38 years in Dunedin & Clearwater, Florida and was a member of Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Clearwater. Despina worked tirelessly all of her life, sometimes two jobs at one time. During her early career in NJ, she worked for Grand Union and the Englewood Board of Education. In Florida she worked for the Jewish Family Services, Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office and Home Shopping Network. Despina loved to play cards, Rummikub, Mille Bornes, Co-can and was an amazing cook. She was always planning the next holiday months in advance. Her grandchildren knew her as "cookie yiayia'' for her famous koulourakia, and her triple chocolate cake was equally famous. The Daughters of Penelope were a big part of Despina’s life. From her beloved Cadmus Chapter in Paterson, NJ to Pelias Chapter in Clearwater, FL. She held the office of chapter president in both chapters. In NJ she held the highest office of District Governor. She is also the only Daughter from NJ to be awarded the National Penelope of the Year award. She will be deeply missed by all of her sisters. Visitation and funeral are on Thursday Aug. 12th at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in West Babylon, NY. Visitation is at 10am immediately followed by the funeral at 11am. Burial will be at Pinelawn Cemetery in Farmingdale, NY. Despina requested donations to Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in lieu of flowers.