Constantine P. Caravasos

Constantine Peter Caravasos, age 91, a longtime resident of Framingham, died July 5, 2013, at St. Patrick Manor in Framingham. Constantine preferred to be called Peter and was born in Elkins, West Virginia on January 2, 1922. He was the son of the late Peter and Pearl (Simpson) Caravasos of Morgantown, WV. He was the beloved husband of the late Juliet (Gegyo) Caravasos who died in January 2013. He is survived by his daughter, Constance Ridge, as well as, his grandson, Matthew Ridge and his wife, Aya, and granddaughter, Katie (Ridge) Collins and her husband, Kevin, and two great-grandchildren, Lance and Lynae Lau. He leaves his brother, James and his wife, Connie, of Morgantown, W.VA. and many nieces and nephews. He was the brother of the late Christine Fetters of Santa Fe, NM. Peter and his parents, along with his sister, Christine, moved to Morgantown, WV in 1926. There he spent his childhood and graduated from Morgantown High School in 1940. In his teens, Peter was an avid fly fisherman and hunter in the mountains and streams of West Virginia. In the fall of 1942, while attending West Virginia University, Peter volunteered in the Aviation Cadet Program of the United States Army Air Corps. On June 27, 1944, Peter received his commission as a 2nd Lt. and pilots wings in Waco, Texas. On July 2, 1944, Peter and Juliet were married in Morgantown, WV. The following five months, they spent in the Midwest and Western United States while Peter received his overseas transition flight training in Reno, NV. In December 1944, Peter flew to India via South America and Africa. His primary mission in the China India Burma Theater of operations was flying supplies and personnel from India to China over the Himalayas (the HUMP); however in May of 1945 on a special assignment known as the Rooster Movement, he flew an additional twenty combat missions transporting Chinese troops to the front lines in central China. Peter successfully flew eighty-eight round-trip flights over the HUMP. After his separation from the Air Corps and the birth of his daughter, Peter continued is studies at West Virginia University and received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration, majoring in Marketing and Management. Peter began his civilian employment as a Contract Negotiator at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, OH where his responsibilities were procuring aircraft and missiles for the Air Force. In 1960, Peter and his family transferred to Massachusetts, establishing residency in Framingham. Peter was included in the cadre of two hundred and fifty personnel establishing the Electronic Systems Divisions at Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford, MA. He continued the contract management field until he was chosen in 1980 to be the System Program Director of the Groundwave Emergency Network. In January 1986, Peter retired from the government service and shortly afterward accepted the position of Director of Systems Acquisitions and Science for H.H Aerospace Design Company, located in Lexington and head quartered in New York City. In 1992, he retired from this position. Beginning in 1992, Peter and Juliet began spending their winters at the Glen Eagle Golf and Country Club in Naples, Florida and their summers at their home in Framingham. Later in life, Peter and Juliet enjoyed sailing, golf, and bridge, both in Florida and Massachusetts. They were both avid gardeners, she with her flowers and he with his vegetables. Additionally, Peter enjoyed surf fishing for striped bass off the coasts of Cape Cod and the North Shore and in the New England lakes for landlocked salmon. For over fifty years, Peter was a member of the Middlesex Lodge and a member of Plymouth Church both in Framingham for over 60 years. Relatives and friends are invited to attend his funeral on Wednesday, July 10 at 9 a.m. from the Norton Funeral Home, 53 Beech St. (Corner of Union Ave.), Framingham, followed by his funeral service at 10 a.m. in Plymouth Congregational Church, 87 Edgell Road, Framingham Centre. Burial will follow in Edgell Grove Cemetery, Framingham. Visiting hours at the funeral home will be Tuesday, July 9, 2013 from 4 - 7 p.m. In lieu of flowers, expressions of sympathy may be made to a charity of ones choice. For online guest book and directions, log on to www.nortonfuneralhome.com.