FAMILY PLACED OBITUARY

CONSTANTINOS S. PAPACOSTAS
$nameCONSTANTINOS S. PAPACOSTAS Constantinos S. Papacostas, who was called Costas by his friends and family, was 68 years old when he passed away on May 9, 2015 at St. Francis Hospice in Honolulu, Hawaii, after his battle with cancer. Costas was the Civil and Environmental Engineering Chair at the University of Hawaii at Monoa. Costas was visited and comforted by his family and friends who were with him at the time of his passing. He was born on September 26, 1946 in Cyprus. He was the first child of Mr. Symeon and Mrs. Loulla Papacostas, both deceased. There are so many wonderful aspects to Costas's life and the ones that stand out are his endless desire to provide unconditional help to his students and friends, his generosity, always smiling, and the true commitment to his work. As a young man he was very approachable and well liked by his peers and friends, and he was a model for his younger siblings. Costas graduated with honors from high school in Nicosia Cyprus and came to the US afterwards to further his education. He attended Youngstown State University, in Youngstown Ohio, and became very active and contributed significantly in a number of student faculty committees and many engineering societies, always aiming at bettering himself and his education He graduated Summa Cum Laude from YSU and continued to Carnegie Mellon University, in Pittsburgh PA, to pursue his Doctorate Degree in Civil Engineering. He elected to complete the last part of his doctorate thesis research at the University of Hawaii in Honolulu and after its successful completion he was offered a position at the University of Hawaii in Honolulu where he spent the remainder of his life. Costas loved Hawaii. He learned the local culture and language and very often he recited accurate information on local history and customs. This is quite evident from his latest volunteering effort, during his short retirement time, to organize a committee for the renovation of the Natatorium National Monument. He was an extremely accomplished professional and for his work he received high recognition, numerous awards and honors. He was an expert in Transportation and served as an officer in a number of professional committees. He was Director of the Institute of Transportation Engineers, Principle and Director of Real Time Traffic Surveillance Laboratory, Technical Director Land Use and Travel Demand Model development, Editor and Contributor of Hawaiian Connections Hawaii LTAP, to name a few. He also served as Advisor to many other professional organizations. His work was recognized throughout his career and some major awards that he received are: ASCE Youngstown Branch Outstanding Civil engineering Graduate, Graduate Fellowship from Carnegie Mellon University, Outstanding Faculty Member Award, Outstanding Faculty Awards Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of Hawaii, Recognition of Professional Merit from the National Association of County Engineers, Recognition for Significant Contribution to Engineering from the Hawaii Council of Engineering Societies and many others. Costas is survived by his brothers George (Irene) and Dr. Savvas (Maria) Papacostas, and by his nephews Simeon, Dimitri and Symeon, and nieces Georgianne and Adriana. There is emptiness and pain but in many ways, his smile and the gift of his generosity will keep Costas with us. Visitation will be on Tuesday May 19, 2015, 10:30 a.m. with memorial services to follow at 12:00 noon at Ss Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Pacific, 930 Lunalino St. Burial will follow at 1:30 p.m., at Diamond Head Memorial Park, 529 18th Ave. Honolulu.S

Our deepest condolences to the family and friends of the deceased

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