JACK HAROIAN

Jack “Hagop” Haroian, 81 years young, passed away on Saturday, February 19, 2022 after a period of declining health. Jack leaves his beloved wife of 57 years, Gail (McClay). He also leaves his daughter, Lesa, and her husband David Vaudreuil of Spencer and his son, Chris, and his wife Jennifer of Auburn along with his two grandsons Thomas and Patrick Haroian. Jack is survived by his brother, Robert, and his wife Marianne of Auburn; he is greeted in Heaven by his sister Betty and his parents, Leo and Martha. Jack was a graduate of Auburn High School, Clark University, Worcester State University, and Anna Maria College.

Jack was inspired by his sister, Betty, to become a special education teacher and taught at the middle school in Southbridge for 36 years and guided many students to attend Bay Path Vocational/Technical High School. His love for Bay Path was great and he served on their school committee for 10 years. Jack also served as past president of the Auburn Historical Society and was a lifelong member of the Auburn Elks. Jack had a deep love for his hometown of Auburn, Massachusetts.

Jack learned the art of coin collecting from his father and was active in the coin collecting community his whole life. Jack was a certified numismatist and especially enjoyed speaking to youth about the art and the hunt of collecting rare and valuable coins.

Jack was so proud of his Armenian heritage and enjoyed sharing stories of his father’s immigration journey with his children and grandchildren. Spending time with family was of the utmost importance to Jack, whether sorting coins and other collections with Lesa, “supervising” projects around the house, or watching his boys play sports with Chris. Jack’s greatest pleasure was perhaps watching Tommy and Patrick at karate. Jack instilled in his family a respect for hard work and thriftiness, however he was incredibly generous in countless ways.

In lieu of flowers, Jack’s family requests donations be made in his name to the Auburn Historical Society, 41 South St., Auburn, MA 01501 or Bay Path Vocational Education Association Scholarship Fund, 57 Muggett Hill Road, Charlton, MA 01507.

Calling hours will be held on Thursday, February 24th from 4 – 7 pm at the Britton-Wallace Funeral Home, 91 Central Street, Auburn. Due to the impending snowstorm, a celebration of life will be held at the funeral home on Saturday the 26th at 10:00 am.