PORTLAND – Taxia “Tess” Efthimion Paras passed away peacefully from respiratory failure following a recent surgery on Friday, Dec. 25, 2020 at Maine Medical Center. She did not have COVID-19.

Taxia is survived by her son and daughter-in-law, Peter and Caroline Paras and daughter, Mari Anne Paraskevas; her sister, Katherine Waite, brother and sister-in-law, Philip and Deborah Efthimion; and many nieces and nephews whom she adored.

She is predeceased by her husband of 57 years, James Paras (born Paraskevas).

Taxia was born on June 13, 1934 in Glen Cove, N.Y. to her parents, Efthimios and Maria Karatzanou Efthimion who emigrated to the United States from Lesvos, Greece.

Taxia grew up in Long Island, N.Y. At a young age she displayed an acuity for numbers and organization and began working at her family’s 24-hour restaurant, the Empire State Diner. In addition to operating the cash register, her family relied on her to organize, type and print the menus which changed on a weekly basis. She graduated from Barnard College and obtained a master’s degree in teaching mathematics from Teachers College, Columbia University. She taught high school mathematics in Long Island, N.Y. before moving to Maine in 1963 when she and James married.

She taught mathematics in grade and high school, but most of her teaching was at the college level – at the University of Southern Maine and St. Joseph’s College. Throughout her life she was active in the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Portland, in educational summer programs for gifted students, and with the Hellenic Society of Maine, of which she was a founding board member and treasurer. She worked tirelessly for the Hellenic Society in all capacities, from rigorously keeping the books to working on ideas for new programs.

Through the Hellenic Society she helped to establish a Sister-City relationship in 2003 between Portland and Mytilene, Lesvos, Greece, and was a member of the official Portland delegation that traveled to Lesvos in 2004. During the refugee crisis in 2016, the Hellenic Society raised funds and sent a container full of medical supplies and equipment from Partners for World Health to the Mytilene General Hospital, a project that was dear to her heart.

She loved cooking, baking, searching for new and old recipes, was a puzzle enthusiast and music held a special place in her heart – she played the violin in her youth and was an avid attendee of classical concerts, operas and Broadway shows in New York City.

The family would like to thank the extraordinary medical staff at Maine Medical Center and the Maine Veterans’ Home in Scarborough for their compassion, kindness, professionalism and expertise.

A memorial service and celebration of Taxia’s life will be held at a future date.

In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made to the Hellenic Society of Maine or the Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church

in Portland.

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