Obituary of Ioannis D. Sotiropoulos

Ioannis "Yianni, Jack, or Johnny" Sotiropoulos, 69 of Vineland, NJ, passed away peacefully on Sunday, June 2, 2019 surrounded by his loving family.

Yianni is survived by his wife of 33 years, Marina; his 3 daughters, Maria, her husband Christopher Padilla and their son Christopher Jr.; Hrisanthi and her fiancé Timothy Codispoti and Crystal, his little princess. He is also survived by his second Mom, Gail Kimmel; 3 sisters, Krystalo and husband Vasilios Mpirmpa, Iris Schmidt, Jayne and husband Ricky Karpen; 2 brothers, Thodoras and his wife Mpia Sotiropoulos, Vasilios and his wife Mpia Sotiropoulos, sister in laws, brother in laws and many nieces and nephews both here and abroad.

He was born in Greece to Dionisios and Maria Sotiropoulos and came to the U.S. as a young boy. Yianni was taken under the wing of Sherman and Gail Kimmel and was blessed with calling them his second family.

Here he was immersed in the world of flowers where he displayed a true gift for growing, culminating and designing flowers. He began his career in the New York flower market, making a name for himself at the Waldorf Astoria flower shop where he was responsible for beautiful floral creations for special events and weddings.

Yianni later moved to Vineland, NJ for a better work-life balance and raised his girls on a flower farm surrounded by the beauty of his green thumb. He was a wholesale grower and supplier for the New York flower market for 26 years. His flowers made it in Martha Stewart magazine and were made famous for the café au lait dahlia, the desire of all brides. In Vineland, he is notably known for Athens Florist LLC., a flower shop he operated and owned alongside his wife for 6 years. His passion was flowers, up until his final days. He was a kind, hard-working man who put his family first above all.

His favorite time of year was Greek Orthodox Easter. He took pride in the traditions and in roasting the holiday lamb. He loved being surrounded by family, especially during these holiday occasions. By his family he is known for his homemade bread. He would bake a large loaf of homemade bread for every birthday, holiday and family dinner. He will truly be missed.

A church visitation will be held on Saturday, June 8, 2019 starting at 9:00 a.m. followed by a funeral liturgy at 10:00 a.m. at St. Anthony's Greek Orthodox Church, 430 W Wheat Rd, Vineland, NJ 08360. Burial service will follow at Siloam Cemetery, Vineland, NJ. Arrangements are by DeMarco-Luisi Funeral Home 2755 S. Lincoln Ave., Vineland. Memories, thoughts and prayers may be extended to the family by visiting dlfuneral.com.