Alexander B. Filimonov

Alex B. Filimonov

Alexander "Alex" B. Filimonov, 88, of Milford, Ohio, passed away peacefully at Twin Lakes Retirement Community in Montgomery, Ohio, on March 10, 2024. He was born on November 7, 1935, to Boris and Tamara Filimonov in Shanghai, China.

Alex lived in Shanghai with his parents until 1949, speaking Russian at home, English around town, and French at the College Municipal Francais, a school he often traveled to by rickshaw. He and his parents loved to travel and spent time at the Great Wall of China, seaside resorts, and lovely mountain towns.

During World War II, he and his parents lived in the English Quarter of Shanghai, where life was relatively peaceful even amidst the Japanese occupation of the city. As resources grew scarcer near the end of the war, Alex’s mother—who spoke Japanese—ran a small silver and currency black market to help make ends meet.

After the war, life improved for a time, but the shadow of civil war loomed over the country. By 1948, it had become clear that they would need to leave China and they applied for a visa to the United States. Despite several attempts, they were unsuccessful. In 1949, the United Nations evacuated them from Shanghai to the small island of Tubabao in the Philippines, where they lived in a US Army tent in a community of 5,000 Russian refugees.

At first, life on Tubabao was idyllic. School took only a few hours a day, so Alex had the rest of the day free to explore the island, play with friends and his cousins, swim, and canoe. But as time passed, more and more refugees left for new homes around the world. During that time, his father passed away, leaving Alex and his mother alone in a dwindling group of refugees.

Finally, in May 1953, Alex and his mother received permission to immigrate to Paraguay in South America. The two of them took a Dutch freighter bound for Buenos Aires, Argentina, across the ocean, stopping at Singapore, Seychelles Islands, Durban, Port Elizabeth, Cape Town, Rio de Janeiro, and Montevideo. After a few more days on a river boat and train, the two travelers arrived near midnight at their new home in Asuncion, Paraguay. They did not speak a word of Spanish.

Alex lived in Paraguay for five years, working for an American agricultural agency, studying and becoming fluent in Spanish, and earning an equivalency high school diploma. He also enjoyed traveling the country and visiting its many spectacular waterfalls.

In 1958, Alex left Paraguay for the United States, where he joined the U.S Army. He served his first year in Seoul, Korea, during the Korean War. In that time, he also spent time in Japan while on leave, visiting Tokyo, Yokohama, Nagasaki, and Mount Fujiyama.

After receiving an Honorable Discharge, Alex moved to Madison, Wisconsin, where he earned a BS at the University of Wisconsin. In May 1966, he became a US citizen.

While pursuing an MS, he met his wife, Beatrice Young, a graduate student in English. After a brief courtship, the two married on May 16, 1966. The next few years were hectic. The couple lived in several places across the country—including Washington, D.C., and rural Minnesota—and welcomed their two sons, Mark and Matthew. In 1970, the two finally settled down in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where Alex enrolled in a PhD program in Radiation Physics.

After receiving his PhD, Alex took a job at a hospital in Rochester, New York, where they lived and raised Mark and Matthew until 1978, when Alex was hired as a physicist at Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital in Hanover, New Hampshire. The couple lived there for 28 years, enjoying the rugged New England landscape and the culture that nearby Dartmouth College offered.

In 2006, Alex and Bea moved to Milford, Ohio, to be close to Matthew and his family. The couple also bought a home in Grass Valley, California for long visits to Mark and his family. While living in Ohio, Alex and Bea had many adventures, traveling to Alaska, Mexico, and Prague, which they used as a jumping off point for a cruise down the Danube River.

Alex is survived by his loving wife Beatrice, his sons Mark and Matthew, his daughter-in-law Katie, his granddaughters Tamara, Madeline, Delaney, and Jane, his grandson Henry, and his great-granddaughter Sylvia.

Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Tuesday, March 19 at 1:30 PM at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Terrace Park with reception to immediately follow. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to St. Thomas Episcopal Church.