Vincent “Van” Alexander

Vincent “Van” Alexander, (October 4, 1930 - July 25, 2025)

Vincent “Van” Alexander, age 94 fell asleep in the Lord on Friday July 25, 2025.

Born on Oct. 4, 1930, in Albany, NY, to the late Thomas and Olga (Moncheff) Alexander. Van was a resident of Norton from 2013 to 2024 and before that Copley for over 45 years. In addition to his parents, he is preceded in death by his wife Eleanor (Velianoff) whom he was married to for 66 years and sister Katherine Velikoff.   

He will be deeply missed by his three (3) children Tom (Laurie) Alexander, Diane (Jay) Wallace, Tina (Beau) Estep, four (4) grandchildren, nine (9) great-grandchildren and sister Mary Calley.

Van graduated in the class of June 1948 from Eastern High School in Lansing, Michigan. He served in the U.S. Army from 1951 to 1953 ultimately achieving the rank of Staff Sergeant during the Korean conflict.

Van was in the restaurant & bar business for over 25 years as owner/operator of John's Tap Room & Van's Lounge. He then went to work in 1982 for the Summit County Engineers and later the Summit County Court of Common Pleas eventually retiring in November 1995 as Special Projects Officer.

Van was a long-time member of St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church and a charter member of St. Thomas Eastern Orthodox Church. He served as Treasurer and member of the Board of Trustees in addition to the building, catering and equipment procurement committees. He also volunteered for the St. Thomas Church Friday fish fry and numerous catered weddings.

Van was known for is loving heart and kind spirit. He will be longingly remembered by all those who knew and loved him.

For those he left behind, he was not just a Husband, Father, Grandfather (Dedo), Brother, Uncle, and friend but was the embodiment of our Macedonian heritage. A symbol of everything we had come from with the courage and conviction to achieve our lifelong goals and ambitions.   

A burial Liturgy will be held on Monday August 4, 2025, at 11 a.m. officiated by Father John Alassaf at St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church 3204 Ridgewood Road Fairlawn, Ohio 44333. The family will receive friends on Monday from 10 a.m. until the burial Liturgy which will be followed by interment at Mt. Peace Cemetery in Akron, Ohio.

The family would like to thank the entire staff at The Village of St. Edward at Fairlawn as well as Crossroads Hospice who provided him compassionate and expert care.

In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests memorial contributions be made to St. George Antiochian Orthodox Church.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Vincent “Van” Alexander, please visit our floral store.