John Athanase Preovolos

John Preovolos passed away at the age of 91 on February 8, 2026. He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Irene; son Nicholas and daughter-in-law Lambroula; daughter Maria and son-in-law Darren; grandchildren Leonidas, Yianni, Andreas and Alessia; sister Efstathia in Greece; and numerous nieces and nephews in Canada, the United States, Australia, Madagascar, Italy, and Greece. Born on the family farm in the village of Neohori, Mantineias, outside of Tripoli, Greece, on April 20, 1934, John was one of eight children. At the age of 12, he began living on his own in a room in Tripoli to attend high school, and at 16 he moved to Athens to attend Hfaistos Technical School and then Sivitanideio Technical Institute, a prestigious polytechnic. He was a very good student, excelling in math and physics. Upon graduation as an industrial electrician, he received a special award from Greece’s Queen Frederica for placing at the top of his class. Were it not for his humble beginnings, he undoubtedly would have gone on to university. Instead, after completing 27 months of mandatory service in the Greek navy and a short stint at the Greek telephone company, John immigrated to Canada in 1959 to seek a better life. He ultimately found work in his field, and in 1965 , met and married his wife, Irene. They settled in Burnaby where they raised their children, Nicholas and Maria. John enjoyed his work and was especially fond of his experiences traveling throughout British Columbia and places as far afield as Gander, Newfoundland and Little Rock, Arkansas, to install and service equipment for the pulp and paper and other industries. At his core, however, John was a family man with a strong commitment to his community and immense pride in his Hellenic heritage. He was especially proud of his children’s academic and professional achievements and volunteered countless hours as principal of Socrates Greek School and an officer of AHEPA, a Greek philanthropic organization. In retirement, John continued to volunteer with AHEPA and enjoyed traveling with Irene and spending time with his grandchildren.

A funeral service will be held at the Greek Orthodox Community of East Vancouver, located at 4541 Boundary Rd, Vancouver, BC, V5R 2N5, Canada, on February 23, 2026, from 11:00 am to 12:00 pm.

Following the funeral service, a committal service will take place at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, located at 3789 Royal Oak Ave, Burnaby, BC, V5G 4A9, Canada, on February 23, 2026, from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm.