Alexander Alex PRATHAFTAKIS

25 FEB 1934 - 26 MAR 2005

• BIRTH: 25 FEB 1934, South Bend, IN
• DEATH: 26 MAR 2005, Mishawaka, Indiana

INDEX

[N18026] Alexander Nicholas Prathaftakis

Birth: 25 Feb 1934
South Bend, St. Joseph County, Indiana, USA
Death: 26 Mar 2005
Mishawaka, St. Joseph County, Indiana, USA
Burial Southlawn Cemetery South Bend, St. Joseph County, Indiana, USA
Plot Section FB Lot 663 - 2
Memorial ID 111839479
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Alexander Nicholas Prathaftakis , 71, of Mishawaka, Ind., passed away in his home in the company of his devoted wife and loving family following complications from pancreatic cancer. Alex fought a courageous battle and even when he knew he was losing, remained brave and selfless, thinking only of his family, until his last day. In 1934, Alex was born in South Bend, Ind., one of eight brothers and sisters to Nicholas and Mary Prathaftakis . In 1938, when Alex was four, due to the death of his mother, Mary, the children were zealously taken from Nicholas by a social reform organization. As a result, Alex grew up in the Children's Aid Society home in Mishawaka. Despite losing his mother, being separated from his father and forced to grow up in an institution, Alex always achieved personal success. He graduated from Riley High School in South Bend as a noted athlete. Holding longstanding records in track and field and football. Alex joined the United States Army upon completion of high school and was stationed in London. Honorably discharged, he returned to South Bend, where he met his wife of 45 years, the former Betty Ruth Stacy. In California in 1960, they married and lived in San Francisco before coming to Mishawaka. Alex was employed at Studebaker and at Torrington Bearing Company, both in South Bend. After Torrington closed, Alex used his many talents to open his own business; named the company after his wife, Betty's Van Seats. With only himself and Betty behind every aspect of the operation, they operated successfully for 14 years until they closed to retire. Alex was of an ever inquisitive mind and actively sought out new places, people and ways of being. He and Betty frequently traveled, exploring the United States from coast to coast and most recently Europe together. Alex loved talking and sharing experiences with everyone and no one was a stranger to him. Alex was a lifelong learner and he loved to read and to experience new things. He was deeply interested in religion, science, politics and history, and appreciated a good discussion. Alex was an accomplished artist, singer and writer, and over the years has shared his gifts with the community in many ways.Alex was an active member of Deer Run Church of Christ in Mishawaka, serving previously as a deacon and as a member of the choir. He is survived by his devoted wife of 45 years, Betty, and by his son, Nick, both of Mishawaka, daughter, son-in-law and loving grandchildren, Angela, Jason, Trevor, Lauren and Jadon Jain, all of Mishawaka, brother, Gus and wife Carol Prathaftakis of Osceola, Ind., brother Tony and wife Joan Prathaftakis of Elkhart, Ind., sister Katie and sister Helen and husband John of California, and brother Manuel of Greece. Visitation for Alex will be Tuesday, March 29, from 4 until 8 p.m. and services will be Wednesday, March 30, at 11 a.m. Procession will follow to South Lawn Cemetery in South Bend. All arrangements are being held at Bubb Funeral Chapel in Mishawaka. Memorial contributions for Alex may be made to Deer Run Church of Christ; or to the St. Joseph County Hospice. Published in the South Bend Tribune; March 28, 2005.

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Alexander Alex Prathaftakis
Man recalls 10 years spent in orphanage
Associated Press
Jan 4, 1995
MISHAWAKA (AP) - Alex Prathaftakis has some fond memories of his time in a northern Indiana orphanage, but he says there are better ways to raise displaced children. Prathaftakis went into the orphanage in 1938 at the age of 4, and he remained there for 10 years. Since incoming U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich proposed bringing back the orphanage, Prathaftakis has done a lot of thinking. He would not support reinstating orphanages like the one he was in. Rather, he favors group homes that focus on individuals and have trained caretakers who could guide youths into careers or vocations. Prathaftakis ended up in the orphanage after his mother, Mary, died of heart failure in 1937, leaving behind her husband Nick, five sons and three daughters. When he left the orphanage at 14, he had a hard time adjusting to living with his father. "I was lost. I was lost in respect to how a parental house functioned. You didn't have a mother, really, or a father. You didn't have that family relationship - that parental relationship. I was lost because I didn't have any guidance." Nick and Mary Prathaftakis were Greek immigrants who met in the United States. When she died, Prathaftakis took the children to New York, hoping to bring all eight to his native Crete. They were staying in a relative's apartment when child welfare authorities had the children removed and placed in a Brooklyn orphanage, where they spent nine months. Prathaftakis asked New York authorities to allow him to take his family back to South Bend. But after a short time, the kids once again were put in an orphanage. They went to the Children's Aid Society, where they were able to get things their father couldn't necessarily provide. "We had decent food. We had clothes and bedding. It was clean and decent," Alex Prathaftakis said. "We had schooling - regular schooling within the school systems of Mishawaka, South Bend, et cetera. We had our Christmases and things like that. " ... It would have been hard for my father to give us what we had there. But don't think he wouldn't want to try." His father would go to the orphanage and take the children out for a few hours at a time. Prathaftakis considers some of his experiences in the orphanage to be positive ones. More than 200 children lived there at the time, and many were from different backgrounds, he said. "It didn't matter what nationality you were or what color you were. ... It wasn't a Catholic home. It wasn't a Jewish home. It was a mixture. "You know what it broke down? Prejudices. For myself, it carried through in my life. I think that is a real influence on you," he said.Today Prathaftakis owns a business in Mishawaka, is married and has two children.