Anastasia Haymon

Anastasia Haymon, 85, went to be with her Lord and Savior, on Thursday, February 2nd, in her home after a long, valiant struggle with the challenging illness of Parkinson’s Disease (PD).

Anastasia was born in Sofia, Bulgaria on April 10, 1937 to Nicholas Theodore and Svetanka Pepeljugova. Anastasia and her family lived in Sofia until she was nine years old. After much paperwork to become U.S. citizens, her father was finally able to move his family to the United States of America, upon the end of the Second World War. Anastasia was a brave young girl when she, along with her parents and two brothers, journeyed for approximately two long weeks at sea on a former U.S. Naval ship named The Marine Carp. On Dec. 15, 1946 they arrived safely at Ellis Island.

Anastasia spent her first years in the United States, growing up in the Kenmore area of Akron. It was challenging trying to fit in as a little girl, with an accent, who was just learning to speak English. Because of this, the school system placed her in 2nd grade instead of the 3rd so she could catch up. She persevered at becoming a part of her new home in the U.S.A. At age 16, she started working at Neisner’s Dime Store part time until she graduated high school at 19 yrs. old (1956). After graduation, she still worked at Neisner’s part time, but then quit for a full-time position at Firestone. She was well-respected by her bosses and colleagues, which led her to a lifelong career of thirty-two years with the company. Even after retiring, she and her tight-knit group of Firestone girlfriends met monthly for lunch. This was something Anastasia truly enjoyed!

Anastasia had many talents and was a gifted athlete. She was an excellent golfer and even better bowler, and was known for winning championship tournaments hosted by Firestone over the years. She also enjoyed practicing the art of Ju Jitsu and was an avid skier. Most importantly, she was a faithful member of the Eastern Orthodox Church and set an amazing example of how to live a life devoted to God and serving others. She was one of the sweetest and gentlest souls you would ever meet, always showing kindness to others whenever possible. Anastasia appreciated life and was extremely grateful to her parents for bringing her to this country. Her life became even sweeter when she met the love of her life while working at Firestone. Anastasia met Gossett Haymon, Jr. in 1970 and after dating for a short time, they fell deeply in love and were married on June 13th, 1971. Together, they started a family and were proud parents of Stacey and Lisa.

Anastasia will be fondly remembered by many for the love she had for her family, especially her wonderful grandchildren, Zachary, Anna, Sofia and Milan. One of her proudest moments and favorite seasons of life was when she babysat during the work week for all of her grandchildren, side by side, with her loving and helpful husband, Gus. They were the perfect team. In addition, Anastasia was an amazingly strong woman…she taught her daughters to be hard-working and how to be a leader. She was a longtime breast cancer survivor, and took on Parkinson’s with grace and strength when she was diagnosed at the age of 76. Whenever anyone asked her how she was doing or feeling, even in her weakest moments dealing with the pain of PD, she never complained and always smiled saying kindly, “I’m doing just fine.” When her husband Gus, passed away last June 2022, she was heartbroken. They were married 51 years so there wasn’t a day that went by where she did not think of him, or how much she dearly missed him. Now, Anastasia is pain free from Parkinson’s and the two have been reunited, where they are celebrating in Heaven with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

She is survived by daughters, Stacey (Richard) Zahoranski and Lisa (Goran) Pesevski; grandchildren, Zachary (17), Anna (15), Sofia (15) and Milan (11); brothers, Jordan and George, and the rest of her wonderful family of nieces and nephews, both in Bulgaria and in Akron.

The family will hold a private service on Friday, February 17th. Flowers may be sent to St. Thomas Eastern Orthodox Church 555 S. Cleveland Massillon Rd., Fairlawn, OH 44333. Memorial contributions may also be made to St. Thomas Eastern Orthodox Church, or to the Michael J. Fox Foundation website at give.michaeljfox.org to help their researchers find a cure for Parkinson’s Disease.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Anastasia Haymon, please visit our floral store.