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The National Herald
www.thenationalherald.com
March 11-17, 2017
101
anniversary
1915-2016
A wEEkly GrEEk-AmEriCAN PuBliCATiON
VOL. 20, ISSUE 1013
st
cv
$1.50
Greek-American Uber Beleaguered Greece Wants World Bank Aid
Rescue funding
Driver Helped Deliver
could go towards
Baby on BQE
job creation
By Theodore Kalmoukos
NEW YORK – Uber driver
Athanasios Tsakalos had the experience of his life on March 5
when he helped a pregnant passenger deliver her baby.
He told TNH “it was around
3 o’clock in the afternoon when
I picked up a woman and her
small daughter in Astoria. She
told me that she was pregnant
and asked me to drive her to the
hospital as soon as possible because she was having pains. As
I was driving on the BQE
(Brooklyn-Queens Expressway)
she told me to stop. I asked her
why? She said to me ‘my water
broke, I am giving birth.’ I
stopped the car, I gave her a
towel and I immediately called
the police and an ambulance. I
took the little girl from the child
seat in the back of the car and I
placed her in the front seat, because I wanted to give to the
pregnant woman more space.”
Tsakalos, 23, continued:
“There was a lot of traffic at that
time and it took 45 minutes for
the police to arrive. You can understand my agony, since it was
the first time that I was seeing
Uber driver Athanasios Tsakalos, who helped deliver a baby.
such a thing. The woman was
yelling “I am in pain, I am in
pain!” and I was telling her to
take deep breaths, I didn’t know
what to do but I kept my cool. I
started seeing the baby arrive:
its hand, its foot, its stomach, I
was holding it with the towel
because it was cold. I was not
pulling it at all, I simply was
saying to the woman to hold on
a little for help to arrive, but the
baby wanted to come out.”
Luckily, Tsakalos said, about
20 minutes later, Police Officer
Rafael Mohammed arrived on
the scene. He has experience in
such matters “and I told him to
take over the delivery. Immediately, he put the gloves on and
delivered the baby girl in my car
and ten minutes later, the ambulance arrived.
“The umbilical cord had
wrapped around the neck of the
baby, but everything went well.
I Followed the ambulance to the
hospital and the only thing I told
them was that I don’t want any
money, nothing. I only want to
know about the little girl,” in
some way to be part of her life.
Tsakalos, whose roots are
from Thessaloniki, was born in
Astoria. He graduated from St.
Demetrios and speaks Greek fluently. He works for a pharmacy
in Astoria and is studying software development. He drives
with Uber to make some extra
money.
“My priority was to get there
to this child and free the airway
up, so everything just kicked in
one after the next,” Mohammed
told reporters on Sunday, as reported on CBS New York.
Tsakalos said he almost can’t
believe what he saw that day,
and noted that “I will definitely
remember this for the rest of my
life.”
Both the mom and newborn
baby girl were taken to Wycoff
Heights Medical Center in
Brooklyn and are fine.
TNH Staff
ability to close another austerity
deal with the lenders.
The revised GDP figures released by Greece's statistical
agency ELSTAT were quarterly
and not final, which the European Commission had also
pointed out, government officials told the Athens News
Agency.
“We are waiting for the April
figures,” the same sources
noted, in response to questions
about the figures released by ELSTAT.
ATHENS – While simultaneously declaring a recovery is underway, Prime Minister Alexis
Tsipras’ coalition government is
asking the World Bank, which
provides loans for Third World
and developing countries, for
additional assistance.
The Radical Left SYRIZA
leader said he wouldn’t seek a
fourth bailout to supplement the
326 billion euros ($343.07 billion) Greece is getting in three
international bailouts, including
a third for 86 billion euros
($90.76 billion) he also said he
wouldn’t seek or accept but did
both.
His government has been
locked in stalled talks for nearly
18 months with the Troika of
the European Union-European
Central Bank-European Stability
Mechanism
(EU-ECB-ESM)
which has demanded more austerity measures of the type he
reneged on before.
The news site Politico said
Greece has turned to the Washington, D.C.-based World Bank
for a 3-billion euro ($3.17 billion) loan to finance employment programs with SYRIZA unable to put a dent in a 23
percent jobless rate, still more
than 50 percent for those under
25.
“The government of Greece
has asked the World Bank to provide technical and financial assistance to address pressing challenges including: long-term
unemployment, economic competitiveness and growth and social protection…In accordance
with World Bank procedures,
any final decision on providing
loans would be subject to approval by the bank’s board of executive directors,” was the
quoted posted by Politico and attributed to a WB spokesperson.
Continued on page 9
Continued on page 9
AP PHOTO/THANASSiS STAvrAkiS
Angry Farmers Protest Tax Increases
Riot police clashed with protesting farmers outside the Greek Agriculture Ministry in Athens. Protesters are angry at increases in their tax and social security contributions, part of the income
and spending cuts implemented to meet bailout creditor-demanded budget targets.
Tsipras Wrong on Economy Recovering
TNH Staff
ATHENS – Rejecting data showing Greece’s economy shrinking
despite three international
bailouts, Prime Minister Alexis
Tsipras boasted the country is
poised to show “exceptionally
high” growth this year.
That
drew
immediate
ridicule and mocking from opponents with the European
Commission saying the statistics
are volatile and could change.
Tsipras, whose Radical Left
SYRIZA-led coalition has been
locked in stalled talks with the
Troika of the European UnionEuropean Central Bank-European Stability Mechanism (EUECB-ESM) since he sought and
accepted a third rescue package
in July, 2015, this one for 86 billion euros ($91.41 billion),
made his claim moments before
Greece’s statistics agency ELSTAT revealed the economy
contracted 1.2 percent in the
last quarter of 2016.
That was far worse than the
0.4 percent decline projected in
earlier estimates in February
and showed the deteriorating
effect of the government’s in-
St. George in 4.1 Miles’ Captain Papadopoulos at the UN
Palm Desert
Celebrates
Turkey’s
Aegean
SabreRattling
TNH Staff
By Vasilis Papoutsis
PALM DESERT, CA – The upscale community of Palm Desert
in California has a small but vibrant Greek-American Orthodox
contingent, and the center of it
is the St. George Greek Orthodox Church, steps away from
the famous shopping district of
El Paseo.
The city is mostly known as
a retreat for the many seasonal
residents who are known as
“snowbirds,” and arrive during
the winter to enjoy the beautiful
desert weather and the picturesque mountain and valley
views, a welcome escape from
the cold Northern climes.
President Obama is expected
to reside in Palm Desert, as did
President Gerald Ford. Most
people are more familiar with
the city of Palm Springs, which
is about a 20 minute drive away,
and has been the gateway to
many Hollywood celebrities, especially in the Golden age of
Hollywood. Stars like Frank
Sinatra, Bob Hope and Dinah
Shore all had homes there.
The Greek community in the
desert has been there for more
than half a century. Anne
Boukidis Michas along with Ann
and Harry Cosmos were the nucleus that initiated the beginning of the parish. Priests from
the St. Elias Greek Orthodox
church of San Bernardino assisted in the spiritual aspect. In
1978, the first Divine Liturgy
was held at St. Margaret's Episcopal Church and the Nicholas
family hosted the first parish
luncheon. In 1983, the land for
the current site was purchased.
Michas recalls when Metropolitan Anthony “called me at home
Continued on page 6
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[email protected]
NEW YORK – “I am excited and
happy the documentary 4.1
Miles can be viewed in homes
around the world, to show the
drama of the refugees in this crisis facing Greece so they can
think to do something about it,”
Kyriakos Papadopoulos told the
National Herald.
The captain of the Greek
Coast Guard patrol vessel 602
based on the island of Lesbos is
the protagonist of the Academy
Award-nominated documentary
short subject 4.1 Miles. Papadopoulos visited Los Angeles
for the ceremony with the director Daphne Matziaraki.
Although they did not win
the gold statuette, they were
proud because of the overwhelmingly positive reaction to
the documentary that managed
to touch the hearts of viewers.
“In Los Angeles, we experienced
such an extraordinary moment
and felt pride because expatriates followed us in and out of
the auditorium at the Academy
Continued on page 4
TNH Staff
seum in Athens; and Ioannis
Mylonopoulos- Associate Profes-
DELPHI, GREECE– U.S. Ambassador to Greece Geoffrey Pyatt,
praising Greece’s restraint, said
America is worried about a possible “accident” in the Aegean
over Turkish provocations.
Turkish President Recep
Tayyip Erdogan and nationalist
politicians are openly claiming
Greek islands near their coast
belong to Turkey as he has sent
F-16 fighter jets and warships
to violate Greece’s sovereign territory and go past Greek islands,
especially the disputed rocky
islets of Imia where the two
countries almost went to war in
1996 over similar tensions and
claims.
Speaking at an international
economic forum taking place in
Delphi, home of the Oracle in
ancient times, he talked about
increased military activity in the
eastern Aegean and as the US
told Erdogan to tone down his
aggressive rhetoric.
Neither NATO, to which both
countries belong, nor the European Union, which Turkey
wants to join, have said anything about the growing incidents and Prime Minister and
Radical Left SYRIZA leader
Alexis Tsipras has left it mostly
to Defence Minister Panos Kammenos to respond, and who has
further provoked Turkey while
other Greek politicians are urging calm.
In other issues, Pyatt said the
United States wants to work
with Europe to help Greece
through its seven-year-long economic and austerity crisis.
“Economic stability and prosperity are important elements
of any effort to broaden Greece’s
role in this region and in Europe. And, therefore, my number one priority is to sustain the
U.S. effort to spur growth and
support economic recovery in
Greece,” the Ambassador said,
the Athens News Agency reported.
Continued on page 5
Continued on page 9
TNH/COSTAS BEJ
Just days after attending the Academy Awards in Los Angeles, Director Daphne Matziaraki and
Captain Kyriakos Papadopoulos at the UN screening of the Oscar-nominated 4.1 Miles.
CCF Honors World of Emotions at Onassis Center
Anastasiades
and Judge
By Eleni Sakellis
TNH Staff
NEW YORK – The Cyprus Children’s Fund (CCF) presented their
Humanitarian and Philanthropic
Award to the First Lady of the Republic of Cyprus Andri Anastasiades and special recognition to
the Honorable Harriet Pavles
George for her service and dedication to the CCF at their annual
Testimonial Dinner on March 5.
The event took place at the Loeb
Boathouse in Central Park and
CCF National Chairman and President of the Fund Savas Tsivicos
expressed gratitude for the hospitality and generosity of owner
Dean Poll.
The event is the last under
Tsivicos’ Presidency and was one
of the best in recent memory. The
Continued on page 4
NEW YORK – The opening ceremony of the groundbreaking
exhibition A World of Emotions:
Ancient Greece, 700 BC - 200
AD, took place on Wednesday,
March 8 at the Onassis Cultural
Center in the Olympic Tower, in
the heart of Manhattan. Among
those in attendance at the event
were Minister of Culture and
Sports Lydia Koniordou, the
President of the Onassis Foundation Dr. Anthony Papadimitriou, Hi Eminence Archbishop
Demetrios of America, Deputy
Permanent Representative of
Greece to the UN Ambassador
Dionysios Kalavrezos, the Permanent Representative of
Cyprus to the UN Ambassador
Kornelios Korneliou, the Consuls
General of Greece and Cyprus,
Konstantinos Koutras and Vasilios Philippou, respectively, the
co-curators of the exhibition Angelos Chaniotis- Professor of Ancient History and Classics at the
TNH/COSTAS BEJ
Dimitrios Pandermalis, Director of the Acropolis Museum, and
Greek Minister of Culture and Sports Lydia Koniordou.
Institute for Advanced Study,
Princeton University; Nikolaos
Kaltsas- Director Emeritus of the
National Archaeological Mu-
COMMUNITY
2
THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 11-17, 2017
Kavakos Performs World Premiere of Lera Auerbach’s Violin Concerto
By Eleni Sakellis
NEW YORK – On March 1,
Leonidas Kavakos, the gifted
Greek violinist, conductor, and
the New York Philharmonic’s
Mary and James G. Wallach
Artist-in-Residence for 2016-17,
performed the world premiere
of composer Lera Auerbach’s
NYx: Fractured Dreams (Violin
Concerto No. 4), a New York
Philharmonic commission written expressly for Kavakos. The
performance took place at Lincoln Center’s David Geffen Hall
and demonstrated the remarkable talents of both the virtuoso
soloist and the composer in a
challenging, imaginative work
that draws its inspiration from
the ancient Greek goddess of the
night, Nyx, the mother of sleep,
dreams, and death, and also
from the fragmented experience
of life in New York City.
The night before the world
premiere, Kavakos and Auerbach took part in a discussion
at Lincoln Center’s David Rubinstein Atrium where they spoke
about the new work. When
asked about the new violin concerto, Kavakos said the creation
of a new piece is always a highlight. He observed that it is important for him to identify with
the music and the composer
when approaching a new piece,
to like the work and the composer, though it doesn’t have to
be written expressly for him as
this new violin concerto was,
but he has to feel it in order to
perform truthfully, especially if
the music demands a great deal
from the performer.
At the concert on March 1,
Auerbach offered an introduction before the piece was performed. She spoke about the ancient Greek name of the new
violin concerto NYx for the goddess of the night. The unusual
capitalization recalls not only
the Greek word for night, but
also the abbreviation for New
York since both inspired the
work. As Auerbach noted, the
goddess Nyx is the mother of
sleep, dreams, and death, the
fragmented nature of dreams
calls to mind the experience of
people coming to New York to
live out their dreams, and like
life itself, the fragments, memories, and the contrasting experiences form a cohesive whole.
The new violin concerto is
divided into 13 dreams, not
movements like most musical
compositions. Powerful contrasting themes highlight the
piece and the ethereal, and often eerie sound of a musical saw
is the “evil twin” for Kavakos on
the violin, as Auerbach said in
the discussion on Tuesday night.
The effect is extraordinary as
Kavakos plays this dynamic
piece with his tremendous skill,
technique, and artistry, all of
which have made him such a
star in the world of classical music. Hearing Kavakos play live is
a thrill for audiences. He communicates such emotion and
truth with every note, even the
pizzicato, the plucking of the
strings instead of using the bow
on the violin, is evocative.
Lera Auerbach’s NYx: Fractured Dreams (Violin Concerto
No. 4) performed by Kavakos
and the New York Philharmonic
with conductor Alan Gilbert at
Lincoln Center’s David Geffen
Hall was performed along with
Mahler’s Fourth Symphony
again on March 2 and 3.
Born and raised in Athens,
Kavakos is from a musical family.
His residency with the New York
Philharmonic features three solo
appearances in repertoire ranging from the Baroque to the contemporary, his Philharmonic
conducting debut, a recital with
pianist Yuja Wang (presented in
association with Lincoln Center’s
Great Performers),and a Young
People’s Concert. Also in the season he appears with The
Philadelphia Orchestra; plays
TNH/ElENi SAkElliS
Composer Lera Auerbach, violinist and conductor Leonidas Kavakos, and moderator Theodore
Wiprud offered insights at the Atrium at Lincoln Center.
mArCO BOrGGrEvE
Classical violinist and conductor Leonidas Kavakos.
and conducts the Houston Symphony; embarks on a recital tour
with Wang in both Europe and
the US; and undertakes a European tour with the Budapest Festival Orchestra and a tour to
Switzerland with the Mariinsky
Orchestra.
By age 21, Kavakos had already won three major competitions: the Sibelius (1985), the
Paganini (1988), and the Naumburg (1988). This success led to
his making the first recording in
history of the original Sibelius
Violin Concerto (1903–04),
which won the 1991 Gramophone Concerto of the Year
Award.
He has since appeared regularly as soloist with the Vienna,
Berlin, New York, and Los Angeles philharmonic orchestras;
London, Boston, and Chicago
symphony orchestras; and the
Leipzig Gewandhaus and
Philadelphia Orchestras. As a
conductor Kavakos has worked
with the Atlanta, Boston, London, and Vienna symphony orchestras; Deutsches SymphonieOrchester Berlin; Maggio
Musicale Fiorentino; Chamber
Orchestra of Europe; Orchestre
Philharmonique de Radio
France; and Budapest Festival
Orchestra. An exclusive Decca
Classics
recording
artist,
Kavakos’ first release on the label, of the complete Beethoven
violin sonatas with pianist Enrico Pace (2013), earned him an
ECHO Klassik Instrumentalist of
the Year award. Later recordings
include Brahms’ Violin Concerto
with the Leipzig Gewandhaus
Orchestra and Riccardo Chailly;
Brahms’ violin sonatas with Yuja
Wang; and, his most recent
recording, Virtuoso (released in
April 2016). His earlier discography includes recordings for
BIS, ECM, and Sony Classical.
Kavakos was named Gramophone Artist of the Year 2014.
He plays the “Abergavenny”
Stradivarius violin of 1724.
The Trial of the Parthenon Marbles on March 16 at Art Institute of Chicago
TNH Staff
CHICAGO, IL – After the success of the Trials of Socrates,
Orestes, and Antigone, the National Hellenic Museum presents the Trial of the Parthenon
Marbles on March 16 at 6:30
PM at the Art Institute of
Chicago’s Rubloff Auditorium.
The Parthenon Marbles are a
collection of Classical Greek
sculptures, inscriptions, and architectural pieces (originally
forming much of the exterior
decoration of the Parthenon)
that were removed and taken
from the Acropolis and shipped
out of Greece. The Ottoman governor of Greece allegedly permitted Ambassador Lord Elgin to
ship the Parthenon Marbles from
Athens to London beginning
in1801. The excavation and removal lasted until 1812. Elgin
planned to decorate his home
with the ancient artworks, but
his costly divorce led him to sell
the Parthenon Marbles to the
British government in 1816.
Sometimes referred to as the “Elgin Marbles,” they were first displayed at the British Museum in
early 1817. Now, 200 years later,
the Parthenon Marbles are still
on display. Since obtaining independence from the Ottoman Empire, Greece has pressed the
United Kingdom for the Marbles’
return, a request that has been
refused on the grounds that ownership was properly acquired.
The case of the Parthenon
Marbles presents contemporary
issues of cultural appropriation
versus the British Museum’s
good faith ownership of these
artifacts consistent with legal
principles. On March 16, the National Hellenic Museum brings
back the all-star team of judges
and attorneys from previous
A few of the sculptures from the Parthenon Marbles in the British Museum.
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AHEPA Bone Marrow
Basketball Tournament
TNH Staff
CHICAGO, IL – The 9th Annual
AHEPA Marrow National Invitational Basketball Tournament
takes place March 8-12 at
Chicago venues, including the
Northeastern Illinois University
Athletic Facility, North Park University Gymnasium, and Northside College Preparatory High
School.
The 28 teams will compete
in 7 groups in the tournament
that promotes the AHEPA Marrow Program, education, raises
awareness of the marrow transplant process, recruits eligible
donors, and serves as a national
fundraising event. This large,
national, competitive, multi-ethnic, pan-Orthodox tournament
concludes with the AHEPA Marrow Award Ceremony immediately following the play of the
Men’s Gold Division Championship game on March 12.
Individual awards will also be
distributed for categories including Most Valuable Player for each
Group in Group Play, Gold and
Silver All-Tournament Team, and
the Most Valuable Player Gold
For more information contact: [email protected] or call: 718-784-5255, ext. 108
The National Herald
E
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www.thenationalherald.com
years for this case from the annals of Greek history.
The bench will feature Justice Anne Burke from the Illinois
Supreme Court and Circuit
Judge Anna H. Demacopoulos.
In a special feature this year,
trial attorneys Sam Adams Jr.
and Tinos Diamantatos will
cross-examine witnesses testifying for the Greek and British
sides of the case. Also among
the judges are Hon. Richard A.
Posner, Presiding; Hon. William
J. Bauer; and Hon. Charles P.
Kocoras. Attorneys Robert A.
Clifford of Clifford Law Offices,
Patrick M. Collins of Perkins
Coie, Patrick J. Fitzgerald of
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher
& Flom LLP, and Dan K. Webb
of Winston & Strawn LLP will
also participate in the event.
Tickets are $100 and may be
purchased online at nationalhellenicmuseum.org.
The AHEPA
Marrow
Basketball
Tournament
raises
awareness for
the cause.
and Silver Divisions, and the
Steve Pappas Award will be given
to the coach selected for his or
her ability during the tournament to exemplify the characteristics of great coaching (i.e. leadership, motivation, strategy,
decision making, substitution decisions, team preparation, and
ultimately getting the most out
of his or her team). The top official of the tournament will also
be selected and awarded the Referee Award of Excellence during
the award ceremony immediately after the Gold Division
Championship Men’s Game. The
complete tournament rules and
information are available at
ahepamarrow.org.
This year the AHEPA Bone
Marrow drives are for Nick
Dombalis, a 66-year-old husband and father of four. Nick
was diagnosed with Myelodysplastic Syndrome at age 64.
Since his diagnosis, he has undergone chemotherapy, but a
bone marrow transplant is his
only chance for a cure. AHEPA
Marrow is hosting drives at
North Park University on March
11 and12.
COMMUNITY
THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 11-17, 2017
3
An Interview with Dr. Michael Kurnellas on Neuroscience Research
By Aria Socratous
Michael Kurnellas is a beautiful mind who keeps the flame
of research and innovation at
the highest level.
His parents are Greek Cypriots and he was born and raised
in New Jersey. He earned a PhD
in Neuroscience from Rutgers
University and from 2009 until
January 2016 he was a postdoctoral fellow and Research Associate at Stanford University
School of Medicine, where he
focused on the research on multiple sclerosis and on the immunology science of the disease.
He is currently working as a
scientist at Alector, an immuneneurology focused biotech startup advancing first-in-class therapeutics for neuro-degenerative
disorders like Alzheimer’s disease, developing therapies that
empower the immune system to
cure degeneration.
TNH: Can you tell us about
yourself? Where were you
raised and how did you build
this beautiful niche for yourself?
MK: Both of my parents are
from Cyprus but I was born and
raised in New Jersey. I received
my Bachelor of Arts in Neuroscience from Drew University, I
have a Master of Science in Biomedical Sciences and in 2009 I
received my PhD in Neuroscience from Rutgers University
I did research on multiple sclerosis at Rutgers and I focused
on Neuroscience. Then I went
to Stanford at the end of 2009
to continue the research on multiple sclerosis but also to learn
more about the immunology science of the disease. The research was in anti-flammatory
amyloid fibrils and the Mechanisms of action of therapeutic
amyloidogenic hexapeptides in
amelioration of inflammatory
brain disease.
TNH: Can you talk to us
about your discovery concerning
the mechanisms of action of
therapeutic amyoidogenic hexapeptides in amelioratin of brain
disease?
MK: At Stanford, I joined
Larry Steinman’s lab to add to
my neuroscience background
with training in immunology to
continue my research on multiple sclerosis. My research was
first aimed at investigating the
mechanisms of action of small
heat shock proteins that are protective in an animal model of
Kurnellas researches
different targets that play
a role in various
neurodegenerative
diseases, including
Alzheimer’s disease.
multiple sclerosis. With my colleagues, we found that small
peptides derived from the protein could form amyloid fibrils
and were therapeutic. When alterations are made to the peptides inhibiting amyloid formation, the peptides were no
longer therapeutic. It was very
surprising that something that
could form an amyloid fibril was
protective in an animal model
of multiple sclerosis. Typically,
when someone hears the word
amyloid, they rightly think of
something that is detrimental,
such as amyloid beta in
Alzheimer’s disease, huntingtin
in Huntington’s disease, and alpha-synuclein in Parkinson’s disease just to name a few of many.
We then developed many six
amino acid long peptides that
form amyloid fibrils, which are
likely not forming toxic structures like the larger peptides or
proteins. We found that the peptides were anti-inflammatory
and can suppress the immune
system, thereby reducing the
symptoms of the disease in the
animal model.
TNH: What are you currently
working on?
MK: After Stanford, I joined
Alector, a biotech start-up that
focuses on developing therapeutics targeting the immune system to cure neurodegenerative
diseases and cancer. Here I am
using my training in neuroscience and immunology to research different targets that play
a role in different neurodegen-
erative diseases, including
Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal dementia.
TNH: What is the difference
between Alzheimer’s disease
and dementia?
MK: Dementia refers to different diseases that have memory loss and cognitive decline in
patients due to damage to cells
in the brain. Alzheimer’s disease
is the most common type, which
is why most people may use the
terms interchangeably. However, patients with other diseases, like frontotemporal dementia, vascular dementia,
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (“mad
cow disease”), Parkinson’s disease, and Huntington’s disease,
have dementia, which is caused
by mechanisms different than
what occurs in Alzheimer’s disease.
TNH: Is there research about
a complete cure of Alzheimer’s
disease?
MK: Yes. There is a lot of interest right now on what causes
this disease. There are genetic
mutations that increase the risk
for the disease, so what I focus
on at the company I work at is
what are the genetic risks and
how do we treat patients that
have those risks. We use the immune system to eliminate special aspects of the disease and
it seems there is genetic mutation that causes a lot of damage.
We have a very good chance of
preventing the disease expanding that way. We are trying to
find the cure of the disease. A
lot of companies put a lot of effort into treating Alzheimer’s
disease by developing antibodies against the disease. There is
a lot of work done now trying
to cure certain diseases. In
Alzheimer’s disease the patient
already has the disease, you
cannot start curing someone until you know that they have it.
The patient may suffer already
and experience a deficiency in
memory and these drugs can reverse that. Dementia can appear
to people in early forties. There
are genes that play a role in the
disease but there are other factors that can affect as well.
PHOTOS: TNH/COSTAS BEJ
Greek Independence Celebration at City Hall in New York
City Council Members Costa Constantinides and Paul Vallone, in conjunction with Speaker Melissa
Mark-Viverito, on March 2, celebrated the anniversary of Greek Independence. The celebration
honored Greek-Americans who have dedicated themselves to serving their communities. The
Council Members honored the Greek Americans Homeowners Association, 9 HUGS (Help Us Give
& Share), and Haeda Mihaltses- National Board Member of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of
America. LEFT: The choir of St. Demetrios School in Astoria performed at the celebration under
the direction of music teacher Vangelis Chaziroglou. RIGHT: Fr. Nektarios Papazafiropoulos,
Stacey Tzortzatos, George Kitsios, Elias Tsekerides, Consul of Greece Manos Koubarakis, Council
Member Costa Constantinides, Apostolos Tomopoulos, Haeda Mihaltses, Council Member Peter
Vallone, Christine Koufalis Karanikas, Anna Maria Kalonaros, and Loula Argyris.
Julia Kokkosis is Crowned Miss Greek Independence 2017
TNH Staff
ASTORIA – Julia Kokkosis, a
pharmacy student at Long Island
University, was crowned Miss
Greek Independence 2017, winning the annual pageant of the
Federation of Hellenic Societies
of Greater New York.
Kokossis, who comes from
Kefalonia, responded correctly
to both categories of knowledge
questions, and made full use of
her mastery of the Greek language.
“We all had a little anxiety
before we stepped out on the
stage, but when we got out
there, I didn’t care about winning, it was the experience that
I and the other girls shared that
was more important. I am very
happy that I finally won, although I did not expect it,”
Kokkosis told The National Herald.
First runner-up was trainee
for Greece’s Permanent Mission
to the UN, Florence Emmanuela
Dallas, and second runner-up
was Fotini Mamos.
Panagiota Chasen (Miss
Athens), Elena Melekos (Miss
Aegean), Stella Fragioudakis
(Miss Nisyros), Irene Koutsoulidakis (Miss Crete), Katerina
Lampropoulos (Miss Messinia),
and Lianna-Electra Papandreou
(Miss Patra) also participated in
the pageant.
The event began with the
singing of the national anthems
of the United States and Greece
by Georgia Catechis. Angeliki
Korais welcomed the audience
and introduced the judges.
“Our main concern is that all
the girls continue on with us,
even after the contest,” said Despina Galatoulas, chairperson of
the event who addressed questions to the candidates, along
with Despina Katsigiannis.
Greetings were sent by the
perennial chairperson of the
committee, Avgerini Katechis
and Federation President Peter
Galatoulas pointed out that “to
claim the title, the young lady
girl must have historical knowledge and Greece in her heart.”
The competition started with
the first stage questions. During
AHIF Releases Spring 2017
Policy Journal
TNH Staff
WASHINGTON, DC – The
American Hellenic Institute
Foundation (AHIF) has released
its eighth volume of its policy
journal. The online journal is
available gratis at ahiworld.org.
The journal is a forum for
commentary and scholarship on
issues of vital importance to
Greek-Americans. In his introduction to the current issue, Editor Dan Georgakas writes of the
pressing foreign policy issues
facing the United States, Greece,
and Cyprus.
Georgakas, a professor and
TNH columnist, stated: “A new
administration has arrived in
Washington during a perilous
time in the Eastern Mediterranean. Turkey is rapidly moving toward a dictatorial government while simultaneously
questioning legally established
borders. The challenges remain:
the intransigence of an authoritarian Turkey, the continuing
refugee crisis, the political quagmires in Syria and Iraq, the possibility of a Kurdish state, the
persecution of non-Muslims in
much of the Arab world, and jihadists able to mount terrorist
actions in the West as well as in
the Middle East.”
The issue’s first section is titled, “The Crisis in the Eastern
Mediterranean.” Six essays discuss the crisis from a variety of
perspectives. The five essays
that follow take on broader issues that concern Greek America. In the “Emerging Voices of
Greek America” section, young
scholars and activists discuss the
refugee crisis in Greece, gay
rights in Greece, and the Pontian and Armenian genocides.
Our two book reviews address
the economic crisis in Greece
and the some of the roots of the
Cyprus conflict.
their presentation, the candidates did not give their names,
but only information about
themselves. Thus, they were
known only by their numbers.
The questions were divided
into three parts: historical, religious, and on the Greek crisis.
Some of the candidates struggled
to answer questions such as "the
birthplace
of
Theodoros
Kolokotronis” or “why March
25th is a double celebration,”
and lost valuable ground in the
pageant.
For the crisis questions, the
candidates all noted that it was
positive for Greeks to leave home
and find opportunities in other
countries, but it was negative that
they would have to leave their
home and families to do so. In
regard to what they would do if
they won the title, the vast majority focused on wider contacts
in the Greek-American community, but also the possibility of organizing charitable and other activities for Greece. The second
part of the pageant featured the
evening gown competition, which
won the audience's applause.
After the event, all the contestants said the diaspora should
make its presence felt in the
Greek Independence Parade on
LEFT: The contestants and Federation of Hellenic Societies
President Petros Galatoulas with the Board of the Cultural
Committee and the judges at the Miss Greek Independence
pageant. RIGHT: First runner-up Florence Emmanuela Dallas,
Federation of Hellenic Societies President Petros Galatoulas,
Miss Greek Independence 2017 Julia Kokkosis and Miss Athens
Panagiota Chasen.
Fifth Avenue on March 26.
“We should all be there to
support our country and to reassert our pride in our Greek heritage,” said Kokkosis, whose sentiments were echoed by Dallas.
Last year’s winner, Maria
Exarchakis, said “the tsarouchia
marching up Fifth Avenue sends
a strong message that Greece is
free.”
Kokossis’ mother, Alexandra
Lascaris, noted that the young
people of the Diaspora should
participate in the Greek Independence Day events. “It will be
good for all children to follow
the example of my daughter and
participate in such events. Julia
will always be in the Federation,
as she is in the parish and school
of St. Demetrios. A child of the
Diaspora, and always close to the
Greek-American community.”
COMMUNITY
4
THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 11-17, 2017
LEFT: SNF coPresident Andreas
Dracopoulos spoke
at the UN screening
of 4.1 Miles which
was recently
awarded a grant
from the SNF to
support further
screenings of the
film.
RIGHT: The
screening was wellattended and
included a
discussion of the
film and the need to
aid Greece in
dealing with the
refugee crisis.
PHOTOS: TNH/COSTAS BEJ
4.1 Miles’ Captain Papadopoulos at the UN Screening of the Film
Continued from page 1
Awards and we were surrounded with admiration and
love,” said Captain Papadopoulos, noting that “the Greeks
when they visit Lesbos donate
clothes and toys to the children.
“The clothes donated by expatriates are used to dress the
refugee children we pull from
the sea. The adults take them
with them and are warmed by
the love of the Greeks,” he said.
At the same time, he expressed
his gratitude to the Stavros Niarchos Foundation for the assistance provided in the production and screening of the
documentary and the millions
of dollars offered to support
charitable organizations and activities in the homeland.
On March 2 Papadopoulos
and Matziaraki attended the
screening of the documentary,
which was held in the filled au-
SNF COO Vasili Tsamis, SNF co-President Andreas Dracopoulos, and Permanent Representative
of Greece to the UN Dr. Catherine Boura were among those in attendance at the screening.
ditorium at the United Nations.
They spoke about the heroic efforts made by the end of 2014
until today to save from certain
death the thousands of refugees
from Syria and other war zones
in the Middle East.
Asked about the awards and
honors, Papadopoulos noted
that “the greatest honor is
knowing we saved a two-yearold child who was trampled in
the boat, pulled unconscious,
and brought back to life, and
the two hundred and more unaccompanied children and the
over five thousand refugees we
rescued by the end of 2014 until
today.”
Equally important was the
awarding of the Prize of the
Academy in 2015, without a
corresponding notice to the
crew of the Coast Guard patrol
vessel - Greek coastguard 602
commanded by Papadopoulos,
for the humanitarian acts during
refugee search and rescue operations in the waters around Lesbos.
Asked why refugees are
choosing Greece, not Italy, and
other Mediterranean countries,
Papadopoulos said, “It is very
difficult to reach the Italian
coast with inflatable boats and
old tubs and they prefer Lesbos
and the other Greek islands because they are very close.
“The lights operate as a compass and orient. Their movements are made at night and
when they see the Greek flag
and the Greek colors of the patrol boat, they feel safe,” he
added. Referring to the
refugees, he said they “carry
daily scenes of war” and that
they “are in a state of panic.
“Our first concern is to reassure and to first rescue the children and then everyone else,
but their boats are overcrowded,
others are thrown from boats to
save first, others push us to go
first, but we try to do our job”
Papadopoulos said. “When we're
on patrol our safety and security
comes second and we are always ready to put our lives at
risk to save our fellow man.”
Asked how the average person can help the Greeks with
the refugee crisis, Papadopoulos
said “They can help NGOs, the
Red Cross, the Greek Rescue
Team of the METAdrasi organization, the Smile of the Child,
both financially and by sending
medical supplies and other basic
necessities.” Referring to the
flow of refugees, he emphasized
that it is ongoing, but does not
have the intensity it had as in
the previous two years.
Cyprus Children’s Fund Honors First Lady Anastasiades, Judge Harriet George
Continued from page 1
violinists Maria Manousakis and
Gody Geil played beautifully and
the Choir of the Pancyprian Association under the direction of
Phytos Stratis stole the show and
led the First Lady Andri Anastasi-
ades and the General Consul of
Cyprus in New York Vasilios
Philippou to join in the singing of
the last song.
The event, as pointed out by
President Tsivicos is both the
largest fundraising event and due
to the generosity of expatriates
and friends the donations exceeded $100,000.
As they did last year, the CCF
presented Anastasiades with a
check for $25,000 for the Independent Social Support Agency,
which supports Cypriot students
struggling with financial prob-
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ABOVE: Accountant General of Cyprus Rea Georgiou, First Lady of Cyprus Andri Anastasiades,
Judge Harriet Pavles George, and His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios. BELOW: Among those
in attendance at the event was news reporter and anchor John Metaxas, on the right, who
served as Emcee.
lems due to the crisis. CCF First
Vice President Nicos Zittis during
the keynote speech mentioned
the donation and encouraged all
to participate.
John Metaxas, MC of the
event discussed the Cyprus issue
and noted that his daughter after
her graduation taught in a Nicosia
school.
The Chairman of the CCF
Scholarship Committee Charles
Anastasiou discussed the role of
education and observed that the
Committee was established in
1980 and since then has provided
over $1 million in scholarships to
Greek and Cypriot students. He
also noted that the decision to
award grants sparked the Greeks
to create numerous legacies.
AHEPA Supreme President Andrew C. Zachariades noted that
his parents came from Cyprus and
that the organization is headed
by a leader in the fight to promote
and solve the Cyprus problem.
President of the Federation of
Cypriot American Organizations
Kyriakos Papastylianou congratulated CCF, the honorees, and the
sponsors of the dinner, observing
that “there are still many children
in Cyprus who need our help.”
President of PSEKA and the
Pancyprian Philip Christopher
praised the charity of the First
Lady and Judge Harriet Pavles
George, mentioning that the
judge participated in the Pancyprian Choir.
Referring to the struggle for
Cyprus, Christopher said that although 42 years have passed
since the Turkish invasion the
fight will continue until we get to
Kyrenia and other occupied towns
and villages that are our own
Ithaca.
Consul General of Greece in
New York Dr. Konstantinos
Koutras spoke of his visits to the
Republic of Cyprus, seeing the
pain and suffering of Cyprus that
continues ever since the Turkish
invasion.
He reminded the Greeks to
support President Anastasiades in
the struggle to resolve the Cyprus
issue and read the poem by Kyriakos Palamidi “child with a photograph” and said, “you help
these children and they are grateful to you.”
“Greece is always on the side
of Cyprus,” Koutras concluded.
Tsivikos referred to the role
and the mission of the Foundation
and focused his attention on the
Cyprus child sponsorship program that has helped four hundred children. He noted that there
are many other children in the
program and invited the attendees to sponsor one of the children whose names were on tags
in the centerpiece at each table.
Tsivikos observed that the Diaspora has donated millions of
dollars for the children and that
in four years of economic crisis
in Cyprus the Diaspora has donated more than a million dollars.
Referring to a Cyprus solution
noted that “we are not for any
solution,” but for the liberation
of Cyprus and stressed that “the
Greeks are soldiers in the struggle
for liberation.”
Archbishop Demetrios read
out the message from the Ecumenical Patriarch and observed
that 2017 has been declared the
year of child protection.
His Eminence then praised the
work of the First Lady of Cyprus
Andri Anastasiades and Judge
Harriet George Pavlis and
awarded the Medal of St. Paul
and the Holy Cross.
Mrs. Anastasiades was visibly
moved by the CCF award and the
Medal of St. Paul and expressed
her gratitude, noting that they
“encourage us to continue to do
our best for Cyprus and the Diaspora.”
She also expressed gratitude
for the donation of $25,000 and
noted that this year they have received requests for grants from
1,070 students.
The ceremony was attended
by the Permanent Representative
of Cyprus to the UN, Ambassador
Kornelios Korneliou, Consul of
Greece Manos Koubarakis, General Accountant and President of
the Children's Aid Committee of
Cyprus Rea Georgiou, President
of the Cyprus-U.S. Chamber of
Commerce Nicolas Nicolaou,
President of Atlantic Bank Nancy
Papaioannou, Bishop Sevastianos
of Zela, and representatives of
other Diaspora organizations.
THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 11-17, 2017
COMMUNITY
5
Artist Jannis Varelas Talks to TNH about Black Frames at Onassis Center
By Eleni Sakellis
NEW YORK – Artist Jannis Varelas was commissioned by the
Onassis Cultural Center New
York to create a new work in
conjunction with the exhibition,
A World of Emotions: Ancient
Greece, 700 BC-200 AD, opening to the public on March 9.
The resulting work is Black
Frames, a large-scale, diptych
painting on display in the
Olympic Tower Atrium, 645
Fifth Avenue at 51st Street in
Midtown Manhattan. The exhibition is free and runs through
June 24. Varelas spoke with The
National Herald about his work.
“And if the soul is ever to
know herself, must she not look
at the soul?” is the line from
Plato’s Alcibiades, quoted by
George Seferis in his poem Argonauts (1935) and also the inspiration for Varelas’ Black
Frames. Varelas noted that
when the Onassis Foundation
contacted him about the commission and the theme of emotions, at first, he didn’t know
where to begin. Soon enough,
his extraordinary imagination
led to dynamic preliminary
TNH/ElENi SAkElliS
Artist Jannis Varelas with his new painting Black Frames, commissioned by the Onassis Foundation for A World of Emotions, in the Olympic Tower Atrium in Midtown Manhattan.
sketches and the final painting.
Varelas told TNH that the
painting took two and a half
months. When asked about the
location in the Atrium, which is
open to the public, he observed
that “it works in the space.” People pass through all day and can
enjoy the painting during their
coffee break or lunch hour since
there are tables and a café. The
bright, vibrant colors create a
fantastic counterpoint to the
darker emotions expressed towards the end of the exhibition
of ancient art in the gallery
downstairs. As visitors move up
the stairs and back into the
Atrium, Varelas’ painting is
there to greet them with light,
color, and movement. As noted
in the description, “The work
explores the complex relationship between self-knowledge
and identity within the context
of social restrictions and impositions, and the emotional conflicts that can arise between a
sense of self and one’s role in
society… [It] combines abstract
and realistic elements to depict
the emotional disruption and
fission between the personal
and the social, the idiosyncratic
and the communal.”
Varelas told TNH that in
thinking about emotions and
the space between human beings, he created this metaphor
with space and color to depict
emotion. The relationship is definitely charged, he said.
A casual viewer noted that
the painting reminded her of
her childhood. The honesty,
freedom of expression, and bold
colors recall childhood and invite the viewer to reflect on
emotions and art in the contemporary world.
It was only about six and a
half years ago that color became
central to Varelas’ work. He told
TNH that earlier in his career
he focused mainly on black and
white and drawings, but turning
to painting as his medium, color
became vital.
Born and raised in Athens,
with roots in Ioannina, Epirus
on his mother’s side and Corinth
on his father’s side, Varelas now
lives in Los Angeles. He returns
to Athens often and previously
called Vienna home for nine
years, though he noted that he
traveled during that time as
well. A Greek artist in Greece,
he said, has to travel.
He received an MFA from the
Royal College of Art in London
and a BA from the Athens
School of Fine Arts. Selected
solo shows include The Breeder,
Athens (upcoming, June 2017);
New Flags for a New
Country/Destroying Elvis, Onassis Cultural Center, Athens
(2016); New Flags for a New
Country, The Breeder, Athens
(2015); and Sleep My Little
Sheep Sleep, Contemporary Arts
Center, Cincinnati, curated by
Xenia Kalpaktsoglou (2012).
Varelas is represented by The
Breeder, thebreedersystem.com.
A World of Emotions Exhibition at the Onassis Center AHEPA Scholarships
Accepting Applications
Continued from page 1
sor of Ancient Greek Art and Archaeology at Columbia University, as well as representatives
of the Diaspora and connoisseurs of the arts and culture.
Artist Jannis Varelas, commissioned by the Onassis Foundation to create Black Frames in
conjunction with the exhibition,
was also in attended at the
opening reception.
Executive Director and Cultural Director of the Onassis
Foundation USA, Amalia Cosmetatou, welcomed the guests
and expressed her appreciation
for the new exhibition and its
upcoming programs.
The Onassis Foundation President Dr. Anthony Papadimitriou
spoke about the role of emotions and noted that the exhibition's messages are timeless and
universal. He said, “A World of
Emotions and the programs that
accompany it are powerful expressions of the mission of the
Onassis Foundation: to support
initiatives in education and culture as a means to achieve social
cohesion. Although this exhibition is a rare and thoughtful thematic gathering of beautiful and
fascinating objects from the ancient world, it is also much
more: a contribution toward a
better understanding of our present-day reality. We are deeply
grateful to our distinguished
guest curators for this important
exhibition and its revelatory catalogue.”
Bringing together more than
130 masterpieces from some of
the world’s leading museums—
including the Acropolis Museum, Athens; the National Archaeological Museum, Athens;
the Musée du Louvre (Department of Greek, Etruscan, and
Roman Antiquities), Paris; the
British Museum, London; and
the Musei Vaticani, Vatican Citythe exhibition explores the ideas
and attitudes of people in classical antiquity toward emotion
and the ways in which the emotions were depicted, revealing
how some are strikingly familiar
to us, and some shockingly alien.
Open to the public on March
9, the exhibition is free and runs
through June 24. A World of
Emotions: Ancient Greece, 700
TNH Staff
TNH/COSTAS BEJ
Onassis Foundation President Dr. Anthony Papadimitriou spoke at the opening reception for A
World of Emotions noting that the exhibition's messages are timeless and universal.
At the opening reception for A World of Emotions, hundreds of guests lined up to view the artwork and many said they planned to return and view the extraordinary works again.
BC - 200 AD is on view Monday
through Saturday, 10 AM to 6
PM, with extended hours on
Thursdays until 9 PM, and will
also be open to the public on
Family Sundays. Guided tours
take place on Mondays,
Wednesdays, and Fridays at 1
PM and on Thursday evenings
at 6 PM. A World of Emotions:
Ancient Greece, 700 BC – 200
AD at the Onassis Cultural Cen-
ter New York, located at the
Olympic Tower, 645 Fifth Avenue at 51st Street in Midtown
Manhattan. More information is
available online at www.onassisusa.org.
SCHERERVILLE, IN – AHEPA
continues to provide scholarships for deserving students
across the country. Among the
many offered by the historic organization and its various chapters, the National AHEPA Scholarships, the AHEPA-DOP District
12 Scholarships, and the Peter
J. Economos Memorial Scholarship are all currently accepting
applications. Check the guidelines below and the individual
websites and local AHEPA chapters for more details.
NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP
AHEPA's commitment to education has been well documented throughout its history. Over $4 million is
endowed at the local, district, and national levels toward the scholarships, and a
half-million
dollars
is
awarded annually. Thousands of young men and
women have benefited as recipients of AHEPA scholarships at these various levels.
The AHEPA National 2017
educational scholarship application is now available.
The applications deadline
is March 31. Any application
postmarked after March 31
will not be considered. More information on the guidelines and
access to the scholarship, as well
as to Scholar Athlete scholarships, is available at ahepa.org.
DOP-DISTRICT 12
SCHOLARSHIP
The AHEPA-Daughters of
Penelope District No. 12 Foundation, Inc. provides opportunities to pursue higher education,
to share cross-cultural experiences, and promote philanthropic programs. The Foundation
encourages
the
development of civic responsibility and individual excellence,
promotes and encourages American values of family, participatory democracy, and free enterprise.
AHEPA-DOP District 12
Foundation will be offering five
$1,500 dollar scholarships for
the year 2017, three (3) High
School graduating senior
awards and two (2) College undergraduate awards. The deadline for returned application is
April 1. Any applications post-
marked after April 1 will not be
considered. More details are
available at ahepadopfoundation.org.
ECONOMOS SCHOLARSHIP
The 2017 application for the
Peter J. Economos Memorial
Scholarship is now available.
This scholarship is provided by
Order of AHEPA Chapter #260
(Chicago, IL) in District 13. All
applicants must: 1) Be a high
school senior who is graduating
or has graduated in 2017 and is
pursuing or will pursue a postsecondary education by attending a vocational, trade or technical school, or a college or
university, OR 2) Be an undergraduate student who is cur-
rently enrolled in a post-secondary course of education by
attending a vocational, trade or
technical school, or a college or
university.
In addition, each applicant
must satisfy one of the following
conditions:
1) Be a current or former
participant in the Junior
Olympics; 2) Be (or be the child
of) a member in good standing
of the 13' District (Illinois and
Wisconsin) AHEPA family (Order of AHEPA, Daughters of
Penelope, Sons of Pericles or
Maids of Athena); OR
3) Be (or be the child of ) a
member in good standing of a
Greek Orthodox Parish within
the Metropolis of Chicago
(please contact your parish
priest for this determination).
Applicants must complete,
sign and return the personal information portion of the application (Sections II-IX) to Mr.
Nicholas P. Bobis by May 8.
More information is available at
petereconomosscholarship.com.
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PHOTOS: TNH/COSTAS BEJ
LEFT: First Lady of Cyprus Andri Anastasiades at Holy Trinity Cathedral in Manhattan for the First Salutations to the Virgin
Mary. RIGHT: His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios presided over the vesper services at the Cathedral.
Communities,
Organizations,
Church Festivals
and Other Events
NEW YORK – His Eminence
Archbishop Demetrios officiated
at the First Salutations on March
3 in honor of the Blessed Virgin
Mary at the Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in Manhattan.
The services were attended by
the first lady of Cyprus Andri
Anastasiades, the Permanent Representative of Cyprus to the UN,
Ambassador Kornelios Korneliou,
Consuls General of Greece and
Cyprus, Dr. Konstantinos Koutras
and Ambassador Vasilios Philippou, respectively, the president of
the National Charity, Maria Logus
as well as leaders of the community and other organizations of
the Diaspora.
His Eminence Archbishop
Demetrios welcomed Anastasiades and wished everyone a good
Great Lent. He spoke about the
real meaning of Lent and emphasized the spiritual struggle and
fasting period, which leads to the
Crucifixion, the Resurrection, and
Easter.
Immediately after the Philoptochos Society led by Dr. Miranda
Kofinas hosted a Lenten dinner.
Anastasiades arrived in New
York to attend the annual gala of
Cyprus Children’s Fund where
she will receive the highest award
from the Fund established a few
months after the invasion in 1974
and for more than four decades
offers help and support to orphans and needy children in
Cyprus.
ab
The First Salutations at Holy Trinity Cathedral in NY
TNH Staff
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COMMUNITY
6
FROM MY BOOKSHELF – A Recurring Column of Literary Reviews
Gerolymatos’ Monograph on Greek Civil War
An International Civil War:
Greece 1943-1949 (2016: Yale
University Press)
By Dr. Constantinos E.
Scaros
Dr. Andre Gerolymatos,
known to this newspaper’s readers as a longstanding columnist,
and who is also a professor and
Director of the Stavros Niarchos
Foundation Centre for Hellenic
Studies at the Simon Frasier
University in Vancouver, has
penned a gem of a book about
the war between the Greeks
(1943-49).
While the book’s scholarly
format – replete with extensive
documentation – renders it a
valued resource for historians of
Modern Greece, the 20th Century, comparative politics, and
military conflicts, it is – perhaps
even more importantly – ideal
for the newcomer to history,
particularly to Greek-Americans
and, more broadly, to all Americans.
Just as there are relatively
few Americans who realize that
the military conflict between the
United States and Britain did
not end with the American Revolutionary War (1775-83) –
most notably, there was the
British invasion and burning of
Washington, DC in 1814, during
the War of 1812, causing President and Mrs. Madison to flee
for their lives – there are far too
many Greek-Americans who
think that since declaring their
independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1821, the
Greeks had no problems with
the Turks until the latter’s invasion of Cyprus in 1974.
Fortunately, this book is a
valuable guide to navigate the
beginner through Greece’s tumultuous history throughout
the 20th century. Importantly,
Gerolymatos places three tables
– a chronology of events, the
pertinent cast of characters, and
significant abbreviations and
terms – at the beginning of the
book, where they belong. I can
appreciate that – as I did the
same in a book I wrote about
the U.S. Constitution. I figured
if I stuck the actual text of the
Constitution in the back of the
book as an Appendix, readers
might overlook it altogether.
That’s why I placed it right at
the start. That Gerolymatos did
the same prompted me to read
through those tables before proceeding to the body of the text.
In a gripping, easy-to-follow
style, Gerolymatos takes us back
to late 1922, to the execution
of six Greek officials held responsible for the loss in the
Greek-Turkish War that year.
Among the essential names and
dates, Gerolymatos mixes in fascinating details, such as that one
of the men was said to have believed that his legs were made
of sugar and would break if he
stood on them.
Next, we are taken even further back in time, to the wellto-do Phanariots, the Hellenes
of Constantinople, contrasted
with the landless peasants of
Greece. Setting the stage for the
Greek Civil War, he writes that
a century earlier, “the Great
Powers (Great Britain, France,
and Russian) dictated the
boundaries and the constitution
of the country. The Greeks had
to accept a very small state and
a foreign monarchy as the price
for independence. Both concessions contributed to a national
restlessness that fueled irredentist ambitions and created a polarized political environment.”
The Great Powers subjected
the Greeks to a monarchy, accepted by them only partially,
and with concurrent feelings of
ambitious self-interest, resentment, and confusion.
Moving to the occupation of
Greece by Nazi Germany during
World War II, Gerolymatos explains how at first the Greeks
were hopeful that the Germans
would treat them humanely, but
that sentiment quickly dissipated, not only because they
brought in the Italians – whom
the Greeks despised – to be part
of the occupation force, but because of the way they helped
themselves to the nation and its
spoils – from taking over villas
and apartments, to reserving the
choice entrees at restaurants for
themselves while the Greeks
were forbidden from ordering
them, to confining the Greeks
to a curfew, and compelling
them to keep their shutters
closed even during the oppressive midday heat.
Gerolymatos points out that
symbolic acts of resistance, such
as taking down the German flag
from the Parthenon were largely
benign, but the harsh German
counter-response caused significant Greek guerrilla rebels to
mobilize in the mountains –
sowing the seeds for the Greek
Civil War to follow.
Painting a vivid if dark portrait of what life was like,
Gerolymatos writes: “People
sought every means possible to
survive. They sold whatever
they had of value to purchase a
loaf of bread, a couple of eggs,
or any form of vegetable. Cats
and dogs became a rare delicacy
and when those were not available, rodents had to suffice.”
Many with only an inkling of
Modern Greek history might be
surprised to learn that the Greek
Civil War did not take place entirely after the end of World War
II, but rather began in 1943 –
though the first phase was
stamped out quickly.
Sparing no gory detail in relaying a story that must be
known, Gerolymatos describes
the left’s vicious execution
methods, such as in the case of
famed actress Eleni Papadaki.
As her executors asked for all of
the clothing, she “broke down,
and started to scream,” he
wrote, describing the subsequent testimony of her accused
killer, Vases Makaronis. “They
tore off the rest of her garments
and for a few minutes left Papadaki shivering and whimpering, waiting for the inevitable
blows from the ax.” Makaronis
testified that he felt sorry for her
and fired a single bullet into her
right temple instead, though
Gerolymatos points out this is
unconfirmed. “Over a month
later…Papadaki’s remains were
uncovered…not too far from the
place of execution…All her
clothes were gone, except for a
silk slip that was raised to her
chest and a garter belt still fastened about her waist, suggesting sexual assault…Dozens of
students from the school of
Drama rushed to the gravesite
and attempted to guard her
modesty by covering what was
left of Papadaki with branches
from nearby cypress trees.” As
Robert Fisk aptly noted in reviewing the book for the Independent (Feb. 2), this is hardly
the image of “relaxed, laid-back,
ouzo drinkers” that one typically
conjures about Greeks. He also
drew parallels of the Greek left’s
barbarism to that taking place
in other parts of the world today.
Those atrocities, Gerolymatos points out, served to
erode the moral high ground the
left had seized, at least in its
own mind. But the right was
brutal and unjust in its own
right, often relying only on circumstantial evidence to sentence to death individuals accused of insurgency, deeming
the mere fact that they were
members of the Greek communist party KKE as justification
enough.
Gerolymatos explains how
the Truman Doctrine and Soviet
leader Joseph Stalin’s reluctance
to test American mettle in
Greece ultimately led to the
communists’ defeat. He concludes by pointing out how the
Greek Civil War “served as a
model for America’s intervention in Central and South America, in the Middle East, and perhaps more dramatically, in
Vietnam and later in Iraq and
Afghanistan.”
This is not a light read, nor
would one not benefit from a
reread – perhaps to reflect on
some nuance missed during the
first go-round. It is a story worth
retelling, and Gerolymatos tells
it well. Anyone interested in the
history of Greece, or in the history of ideology run amok leading to terror and full-blown war,
would be well-served to read it.
The 3rd Annual Greek Orthodox Youth Talent Show
TNH Staff
PALM HARBOR, FL – More
than 140 children and young
adults in the Greek Orthodox
Metropolis of Atlanta gathered
from parishes all over Florida to
perform at the 3rd Annual
Greek Orthodox Youth Talent
Show of Tampa Bay. Over 700
people were in the audience for
the February 19 show at the
Palm Harbor University Theater.
Among the dignitaries were His
Eminence Metropolitan Alexios
of Atlanta, Congressman Gus
Bilirakis, Congressman Michael
Bilirakis, Tarpon Springs Mayor
Chris Alahouzos, Consul General Adamantis Klotsa, Vicar Fr.
James Rousakis, and area Greek
Orthodox clergy.
The event featured performers
of all ages share their God given
talents. This year’s show had 24
performances (140 performers)
and the Master of Ceremonies
was Xrisanthi Giannis- Meteorologist of Fox News, Orlando.
The performers chose their
own style of art and many came
showcasing their original pieces.
Included in the night’s acts were
Greek folk music performances,
vocalists, musicians on laouto,
violin, piano, and guitar along
with Broadway favorites and
dance routines ranging from hip
hop to ballroom. One highlight
of the event was 12-year-old
Vasi Paris who performed a tribute Julia Mounts - an absolutely
brilliant prodigy who partici-
This year’s show had 24
performances, 140
performers, and Xrisanthi
Giannis- Meteorologist of
Fox News, Orlando as the
Emcee.
pated in the first year’s show.
Julia bravely struggled with and
ultimately lost her battle to cancer shortly after her 2015 performance. Vasi, was there to see
Julia perform that night and
told her mother, “Mommy, one
day I would like to play like Julia.” This year everyone in the
audience had tears in their eyes
as they listened and watched
Vasi play “Lyric Nocturne” on piano as her tribute to Julia.
Among the churches that
performed were St. Nicholas-
Tarpon Springs, St. BarbaraSarasota, Holy Trinity- Clearwater, Holy Trinity- Orlando, St.
Stefanos- St. Petersburg, St.
John- Tampa, St. George- Port
Richey, and host parish Saints
Raphael, Nicholas and Irene of
Palm Harbor.
“It’s amazing to see these
kids so proud of their Hellenic
roots and Orthodox Christian
ideals,” said the show’s founder
and director, Erine Koulianos.
“What a blessing to be able to
showcase these hidden talents
and passions. It has been so incredible to see the youth come
together in fellowship in a beautiful spirit of love and unity.”
The show takes an entire
year to prepare. A tremendous
amount of hard work goes into
organizing the acts individual
acts into one cohesive and full
energy production with so many
talents coming from all over
Tampa Bay and beyond. Over
75 volunteers assisted in the
production including the ushers,
lights, sound, and stage crew.
For this year’s production, Irene
Karakoviros- vocal director, Nick
Macris- music director along
with Maria Sarantis- event Co-
Chair coordinated with others
to prepare a medley of songs for
the show’s finale. The demo was
emailed out months in advance
for all the artists to practice. The
night ended with all the performers and volunteers filling
the stage playing instruments,
singing, and dancing. It was a
truly beautiful evening for the
performers and audience alike.
The proceeds of this unique
event continue to benefit the
construction of the Panaghia
Chapel at the Diakonia Retreat
Center in Salem, SC. “This beautiful act of service will help to
create an environment which
ensures that our children,
grandchildren, and countless future generations will always
have a place which reflects
God’s glory and the pride of our
Greek Orthodox heritage. The
participants are exceptionally
talented. The caring parents encourage their children to express themselves in an environment that is supportive and
loving. The youth is excited and
are inspired by each other to
challenge themselves in a productive and creative way,” Metropolitan Alexios said.
St. George Church in Palm Desert, CA Celebrates
Continued from page 1
and asked me to come and visit
a prospective site for a future
church. The next day I went
with my husband, Harry, and
met the metropolitan at the site.
Jim
Kalyvas
and
Kerri
Ayianopoulos were also present
and we agreed to make an offer
for the land. I negotiated the
deal and couple days later our
offer was accepted and with a
down payment of $50,000 the
site of our current church was
purchased for $156,000 down
from the $185,000 they were
initially asking.”
Chicago banker James
Kostakis donated a million dollars that got construction underway. Significant contributions
were also made by real estate
tycoon Alex Spanos, owner of
the Chargers football team and
his friend Leonard Firestone.
The parishioners' hard work was
also important in the construction.
“The Nicholas family worked
very hard during the construction. George Nicholas built the
church's first altar,” Michas said.
Shortly thereafter, Metropolitan
Anthony appointed Michas as
the first Parish Council President. George Tcharos was the
first Vice President and Fanny
Nicholas was the first Treasurer.
The St. George
Philoptochos Society
reaches out regularly to
the desert community
with philanthropic
missions.
“Actor Telly Savalas attended
services regularly as did Vice
President Spiro Agnew's wife,
Judy,” Michas told TNH.
Today, the parish consists of
120 families, mostly Englishspeaking; thus the liturgy is in
English, except for of the
hymns, which are in Greek. Despite the economic crisis in
Greece over the last seven years,
few Greeks find the way to the
desert: “We only have a couple
of families from Greece, most of
the families are mixed mar-
riages,” Fr. Theodore Pantels,
who has been the priest since
2004, told TNH.
“We only have Sunday school
because we cannot get teachers
to teach the Greek language or
folk dancing. We are a little too
far away.” The St. George
Philoptochos Society reaches
out regularly to the desert community with philanthropic missions. The Philoptochos donates
to homeless shelters such as the
Coachella Valley Rescue Mission
and offers money contributions
to Visiting Nurses. Through the
Knitting Project they provide
blankets for the City of Hope.
Philoptochos also contributes to
The Ophelia Project a nonprofit
that empowers teenage girls to
increase their sense of self
worth, and collaborates with the
Catholic Church in a pro-life
ministry program.
The Greek festival that just
ended was a major success and
it is “one of the major fundraisers of the church. During the
two days, we get about 6,000
people to visit the grounds and
enjoy our food and music,” Fr.
Pantels said. The church tours
that are offered during the festival are particularly fulfilling to
Fr. Ted because “they give me
the opportunity to show our
church to new people, talk to
them about our faith, answer
their questions and invite them
to a service.” One of this year's
festival attendees was George
Stephanopoulos, the producer
of the sports comedy Swing
Away that was filmed in Greece
and had a well attended local
screening. Jenni Pulos, the reality celebrity star who has family in the desert, has attended
and entertained the crowds in
the past. The Golf tournament
is the other major fundraiser for
the Church and it will take place
at the Desert Willow Golf Resort
April 21-22. The weekend will
conclude with liturgy for the
Feast Day of Saint George on
April 23.
His Eminence Metropolitan
Gerasimos of San Francisco will
be in attendance to mark the
20th Anniversary of celebrating
St. George, the Church's patron
saint.
THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 11-17, 2017
GOINGS ON...
n THRU mARCH 26
ASTORIA – The extremely popular Greek play, the Cockroach
by Vassilis Mavrogeorgiou, starring Thodoris Petropoulos and
Fanis Gkikas, is produced for the
first time in New York. The
Cockroach is the story of
Ioanna, a small red cockroach
who struggles to achieve her life
goad: travel to the moon.
Ioanna wanders around the
sewers and dark allies, she is
crossing the ocean, she is dancing and singing, she meets other
insects, rodents and humans,
while she has an unshakable
faith in her great dream. In fact,
faith is all she has. The performance is in Greek with English
subtitles. Directed by Thodoris
Petropoulos, the play features
original music by Kostas Gakis.
The Production Manager is Helen Driva. The show runs Friday,
Mar. 3 to Sunday, Mar. 26. Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM and
Sundays at 5 PM at The Greek
Cultural Center, located at 2680 30th St, Astoria, NY. For
more information call 718-7267329 or email [email protected]. Tickets are $15
for Students, $25 General Admission and are available at
brownpapertickets.com.
n THRU mAY 4
MANHATTAN – The A.S. Onassis Program in Hellenic Studies
at NYU presents Greek Cinema
Today Spring 2017 Film Series
on Thursdays through May 4 at
6:30 PM at 12 Waverly Place,
Room G-08, in Manhattan. Curated by Visiting Prof. Eleftheris
Astrinaki, the series includes
unique films such as The Lobster
on March 23, Raw Material directed by Christos Karapelis on
March 30, 4.1 Miles by Daphne
Matziaraki and 722 TMX Engineer Battalion by Yannis
Koufounikos on April 6, Spring
Awakening on April 13, Golden
Dawn: A Personal Affair on April
20, and Park on May 4. The film
screenings are free and open to
the public and include appearances by the filmmakers. More
information is available at
[email protected] or 212-9983979.
n mARCH 10-12
LOS ANGELES, CA – The National Hellenic Student Association (NHSA) of North America
is excited to host our Hellenic
Weekend & Convention #XVII
in Los Angeles, on March 10-12,
2017! NHSA is the umbrella organization for over 50 university
chapters of Hellenic Student Associations across North America.
The NHSA has two conventions
per year offering educational,
networking, and social opportunities for undergraduates,
graduate students, PhD candidates, and alumni. Tickets: $15$180, depending on the package. The Ultimate Weekend
Package includes hotel for Friday and Saturday, admission to
all weekend events, and eligibility for attendance scholarships. More information is available at nhsaofamerica.org or by
phone: 917-805-3430. Register
at eventbrite.com.
NEWRY, ME – Greek Ski Weekend at Sunday River Ski Resort,
15 South Ridge Road in Newry,
sponsored by St. Vasilios Church
in Peabody, ME. Adults and
Family Ski Weekend accommodations are at the Grand Summit Hotel, special rates starting
at $147 for quad occupancy. In
addition to skiing, the weekend
includes Friday night welcome
reception, special Greek entertainment on Saturday night and
Sunday liturgy. Junior and Senior GOYA Ski Retreat-all-inclusive trip staying at the Snow
Cap Dorm. For more information call or text Mark Metropolis
781-771-4008
or
email
[email protected].
n mARCH 11
WEBSTER, MA – The Orthodox
Christian Studies Center of
Fordham University 2017
Lenten Parish Talks continue on
Saturday, Mar. 11, “Why Be Orthodox: Understanding Orthodox Spiritual Practices” and
“Why Are People Leaving the
Church? - And What Can We Do
About It?” will be presented by
Center Co-Founder Dr. Aristotle
Papanikolaou at Saints Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox
Church, 37 Lake Parkway in
Webster from 9:30 AM to 12:30
PM Lenten Retreat with talks at
10 AM and 11:15 AM.
n mARCH 12
ASTORIA – The Federation of
Dodecanese Societies of America invites all to attend the celebration of the 69th anniversary
of the unification of the Dodecanese with Greece beginning
at 10:30 AM at St. Demetrios
Cathedral, 30-11 30th Drive in
Astoria, with the Divine Liturgy
presided over by His Eminence
Metropolitan Evangelos of New
Jersey. Following the liturgy, the
celebration continues in the Petros Patrides Cultural Center
with light refreshments, speakers, and traditional dances. Admission to the event is free. For
more information, call George
Andriotis: 516-946-7892.
MANHATTAN – Kehila Kedosha
Janina Synagogue and Museum,
280 Broome Street (between
Allen and Eldridge Streets), presents an Epirotiki and Rebetika
Concert featuring Vasilios Kostas,
Beth Bahia Cohen, and Lefteris
Bournias on Sunday, Mar. 12
from 7:30-9:30 PM. Tickets are
$20 and can be paid in advance
by check made out to Kehila Kedosha Janina and mailed to Kehila Kedosha Janina 1 Hanson
Place, Huntington, NY 11743, or
paid cash only at the door. More
info available via email
[email protected] or by phone:
212-431-1619.
n mARCH 13
MANHATTAN – The American
Hellenic Institute Business Network requests the pleasure of
your company at its Monthly Informal Networking Reception at
Avra Restaurant, 141 E 48th
Street in Manhattan on Monday,
Mar. 13, 5:30-7:30 PM. Please
RSVP to [email protected].
n mARCH 14
SOMERVILLE, MA – Swing Away
Greek Movie Screening at the
Somerville Theatre, 55 Davis
Square in Somerville, on Tuesday,
Mar. 14 at 7 PM. Swing Away is
a unique inspirational sports
comedy set in Greece. Following
a meltdown that leads to a suspension, professional golfer Zoe
Papadopoulos travels to her
grandparents’ village in Greece
to escape the harsh spotlight of
the international sports world.
Between baking bread and eating
baklava, she meets and mentors
a ten-year-old girl who is determined to become the next golf
sensation. Along the way, Zoe rediscovers her Greek heritage, her
love of the game, and the hidden
strength within herself as she inspires the townspeople in an epic
showdown against a greedy
American developer. More info
on www.swingawaymovie.com
and 617-625-5700.
n mARCH 15
CARLSBAD, CA – Floral Spring
Seasonings Culinary event at
Kitchen Gardens, 5704 Paseo Del
Norte in Carlsbad on Wednesday,
Mar. 15 11AM-1PM. Let’s cook
with flowers! Join Chef Mary Papoulias-Platis as we gather and
enjoy a farm inspired luncheon.
You will learn all about flower
blossoms and how to apply them
to your savory as well as sweet
dessert dishes. Take away tips on
how to grow your very own edible flowers. Our Kitchen Gardens
is an outdoor venue, and this
class will include two creative activates, a floral design and special
food craft for a take home gift.
Tickets are $45 and available online at www.eventbrite.com,
search Floral Spring Seasonings
Culinary Event in Carlsbad.
BROOKVILLE, NY – The Orthodox Christian Studies Center of
Fordham University 2017 Lenten
Parish Talks continue on Wednesday, Mar. 15, with "My God, My
God, Why Have You Forsaken
Me?” presented by Center CoFounder Dr. George Demacopoulos at the Church of the Holy Resurrection, 1400 Cedar Swamp
Road, in Brookville, NY at 6:30
PM Pre-Sanctified Liturgy followed by Lenten Dinner and Discussion.
MANHATTAN – Hellenic Professional Women Inc. (HPW) is
hosting a "Cocktails & Connecting" event at Thalassa, 179
Franklin Street in Manhattan on
Wednesday, Mar. 15 at 6:30-8:30
PM. Please stop by to network,
meet someone new or catch up
with a friend. "Small bites" will
be provided by Thalassa and
there will be a cash bar. Please
visit www.hellenicprofessionalwomen.org for details.
n mARCH 16
MANHATTAN – The Hellenic
Medical Society of New York invites you to honor Maria
Theodoulou, MD, Medical Oncology, Albany, New York, with the
Dr. Mary Kalopothakes Distinguished Female Physician Award,
at Lenox Hill Hospital - Bruno
Conference Room, 100 East 77th
Street in Manhattan, on Thursday, Mar. 16, from 7-9:30 PM.
Please RSVP to 718-398-2440 by
Tuesday, Mar. 14.
n mARCH 18-19
BROOKLINE, MA – Annual Maliotis Greek Dance Workshop on
Sat and Sun March 18 and 19, at
the Maliotis Cultural Center 50
Goddard Avenue in Brookline.
Learn a variety of regional dances
from experienced instructors.
Saturday’s workshop will include
1¼-hour classes. Classes are designed for participants ages 13
and older, all skill levels. Saturday evening, there will be a
glendi with mezedakia. Sunday’s
workshop will include basic
Greek dance classes as well as
master classes in dances of Pontos, Crete, and Thrace. Fee per
person: $100 for Saturday
classes, glendi, and Sunday
classes; $75 for Saturday classes
and glendi; $40 for Sunday master class only. Pre-registration and
advance payment is required.
Register and pay online at MaliotisCenter.org.
COMMUNITY
THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 11-17, 2017
7
GREEK GASTRONOMY
OUR EVERYDAY GREEK
Hungry for Fruit Spoon Sweets, Γλυκά του Κουταλιού!
By Dr. Dimitra Kamarinou
Τraditional Greek sweets are made from fruit in sugar syrup.
They are called “spoon sweets,” not only because they are eaten
with a teaspoon, but also because the served quantity is a heaping
teaspoon. The exact translation from Greek would be “sweet of
the spoon,” using the genitive case of the word spoon (το κουτάλι
/του κουταλιού). Delicious spoon sweets are made from cherries,
wild cherries, apples, earl grays, figs, walnuts, strawberries, even
from water melon. Each region has its own traditional sweets, related to the agricultural products of the area.
Greek word
Το γλυκό
Το κουτάλι
Το γλυκό του κουταλιού
Το μήλο
Το κεράσι
Το βύσσινο
Το κυδώνι
Το πορτοκάλι
Το καρπούζι
Το σύκο
Η φράουλα
Θέλω
VOCABULARY
Pronunciation
TO yliKO
TO kooTAli
TO yliKO too kootaliOO
TO MEElo
TO keRAsi
TO VEEsino
TO kiDOni
TO portoKAli
TO karPOOzi
TO SEEko
EE FRAoola
THElo
Note that when we order two or more sweets of the same kind
-for instance, cherry- we use the plural of the word sweet (γλυκά), but we keep the singular of the fruit, because it indicates the
fruit sort and not the quantity: ένα γλυκό του κουταλιού κεράσι /
δύο γλυκά του κουταλιού κεράσι.
The verb πεινάω, I am hungry, falls into the Conjugation B1
verbs category. This category can be easily distinguished by the
stressed -άς ending of the second person singular. This is how it is
conjugated:
Greek verb
Εγώ πειν-άω
Meaning
sweet
spoon
spoon sweet
apple
cherry
wild cherry
quince
orange
water melon
fig
strawberry
I want
This is how you will order a spoon sweet:
DIALOGUE
-Ποιο γλυκό του κουταλιού θέλετε; (Which spoon sweet would
you like?)
-Θέλω γλυκό του κουταλιού πορτοκάλι. Έχετε; (I want spoon
sweet orange. Have you got?)
-Όχι, δεν έχουμε. (No, we don’t have.)
-Έχετε γλυκό του κουταλιού κυδώνι; (Do you have spoon sweet
quince?)
-Όχι, έχουμε γλυκό του κουταλιού βύσσινο και κεράσι. (No, we
have spoon sweet wild cherry and cherry.)
-Θέλουμε ένα γλυκό του κουταλιού βύσσινο και δύο γλυκά του
κουταλιού κεράσι. (We want one spoon sweet wild cherry and two
spoon sweets cherry.)
Pronunciation
Εσύ πειν-άς
Η Μαρία πειν-άει
Εμείς πειν-άμε
Εσείς πειν-άτε
Η Μαρία και ο Πέτρος πειν-άνε
Meaning
eYO piNAo
I am hungry
eSEE piNAS
you are hungry
EE maREEa piNAi
Maria is hungry
eMEES piNAme
We are hungry
eSEES piNAte
You are hungry
EE maREEA KE O PEtros piNAne Maria and
Petros are hungry
EXERCISE
1. WHAT DO THEY WANT TO EAT? Add the correct ending of
the verb πεινάω and of the verb θέλω.
Remember that the verb θέλ-ω is a conjugation A verb conjugated as follows: εγώ θέλ-ω, εσύ θέλ-εις, η Μαρία θέλ-ει, εμείς
θέλ-ουμε, εσείς θέλ-ετε, η Μαρία και ο Πέτρος θέλ-ουν.
Artichokes with Potatoes: a
Springtime Favorite
By Eleni Sakellis
Artichokes are a wonderful
spring vegetable to enjoy in a
variety of ways. Full of nutrients, artichokes have one of the
highest totals of antioxidants of
any vegetable. They oxidize
(turn brown) quickly once cut
if not sprinkled with lemon juice
or placed in a bowl of water
with lemon juice added. The
acid helps delay the oxidation
of the artichokes. In Greek cuisine, the artichoke has been a
popular vegetable since ancient
times. The wild variety, if you
can find them, or you happen
to be in Greece, are tiny compared to the California-grown
varieties we find in the United
States, but the flavor is so delicious, it’s unforgettable. The
wild artichokes are often cooked
simply as an addition to scram-
the toughest outer leaves and
cut off the thorny end with a
sharp knife. If the stems are intact and in good shape, leave
them on and peel off the tough
outer layer. Cut the artichokes
in half and scoop out the choke
with a paring knife. Place the
cut halves of artichoke in a bowl
of cold water with the juice of
half a lemon squeezed in. Continue with the rest of the artichokes, then set aside. Prepare
the potatoes by rinsing, peeling,
and chopping into cubes. Set
aside in a bowl of cool water
until ready to use.
In a large sauté pan or Dutch
oven, heat the olive oil over
medium high heat until it shimmers. Add the scallions, a dash
of salt, and sauté until translucent. Drain the water from the
artichokes and add them to the
pot. Drain the potatoes and add
1.1. Η Ελένη πειν- . Θέλ- ένα γλυκό του κουταλιού βύσσινο.
1.2. Εγώ πεινά- . Θέλ- ένα γλυκό του κουταλιού φράουλα.
1.3. Ο Πέτρος πειν- . Θέλ- ένα γλυκό του κουταλιού πορτοκάλι.
1.4. Εγώ πειν- . Θέλ- δύο γλυκά του κουταλιού μήλο.
1.5. Η Ελένη και ο Γιάννης πειν- . Θέλουν δύο γλυκά του κουταλιού σύκο.
2. WHICH SPOON SWEET DO THEY WANT? Add the correct
Greek word. Note that neuter nouns take the indefinite article ένα:
το γλυκό, ένα γλυκό.
2.1. Πεινάω. Θέλω ….. (a spoon sweet quince)
2.2. Ο Γιώργος πεινάει. Θέλει ….. (a spoon sweet cherry)
2.3. Μαμά, εμείς πεινάμε. Θέλουμε ….. (two spoon sweets water
melon)
2.4. Η Ιωάννα και ο Πέτρος
πεινάνε. Θέλουν ….. (two
spoon sweets wild cherry)
2.5. Η Κατερίνα πεινάει. Θέλει ….. (a spoon sweet apple)
2.6. Άννα πεινάς; Θέλεις ….;
(a spoon sweet strawberry?)
PRONUNCIATION KEY
i (i-diom), ee (n-ee-dle), e
(e-nergy), o (o-rganism), oo (boo-t), y (y-es), h (h-elium), th
(th-eory), d (th-e), gh (w-olf).
The capitalized syllables are accented.
Dimitra Kamarinou, PhD, has
studied philology and archaeology at the University of Ioannina,Würzburg and Bochum in
Germany.
She
has
been
honored with the Academy of
Athens Award in Archaeology
and Homeric Philology.
LITERARY REVIEW
Karavasilis Focuses on Genocide in Whispering Voices
By Eleni Sakellis
Though academic and author
Dr. Niki Karavasilis retired in
1995, she has continued to
write about her Greek heritage.
In her first book, Scattered
Leaves, she wrote about Greek
family life during World War II,
the devastation of the Italian
and German invasions, and the
Greek Civil War that followed.
Her second book, The Abducted
Greek Children of the Communists: Paidomazoma, recounts
the story of thousands of abducted children during the
Greek Civil War who spent
thirty-three years living behind
the Iron Curtain. Karavasilis’
The Whispering Voices of
Smyrna, focuses on the Greek
genocide at the hands of the Ottoman Empire which began during World War I, culminating in
the Asia Minor Catastrophe and
the burning of Smyrna in 1922.
On February 26 she gave a
lecture on the topic The Greek
Genocide and the Catastrophe
of Smyrna at St. Barbara's Greek
Orthodox Church in Sarasota,
FL. The proceeds from the lecture and book sales were donated to Sarasota County's summer hunger program.
Karavasilis said about the
genocide, as reported in the
Sarasota Herald-Tribune, “It
should be remembered, so it
should not be repeated again. A
lot of innocent people lost their
lives for nothing.”
During the lecture, she
shared the stories of Greeks who
managed to flee Smyrna before
it was too late. Early on in her
research, Karavasilis unexpectedly ran into a survivor of the
Catastrophe, while at a cafe
near her home in a suburb of
Athens. She was approached by
an elderly Greek man, Karavasilis said, as reported in the
Herald-Tribune, “He lived in
Smyrna and was from a very affluent family, the father was sent
to the desert, and they never
saw him again. And one of his
sisters was very pretty; the Turkish soldiers took her away, and
we don't know what happened
to her.”
Karavasilis soon became
known in town as the American
lady writing about the genocide,
and people shared their stories
of survival which along with her
own research formed the basis
of the book written in 2006.
A particularly poignant story
that Karavasilis shared was of a
father separated from his wife
and children. Returning to
Turkey in search of his family,
he was sent to a young professor
who turned out to be the man’s
son and was in the Turkish
army. As he begged for help,
asking if he knew where his son
Nick was, the young man said,
“Dad, I am Nick,” as Karavasilis
told the Herald-Tribune.
Father John Bociu of St. Barbara’s Church, told the Herald
Tribune that Karavasilis is a “resource in the community” and
shared the view about the importance of remembering history, especially difficult topics
such as genocide- “We need to
pay attention and hear these
things. Ethnic cleansing and this
kind of oppression that is ethnic-based or faith-based has not
stopped — we do have to pay
attention to what's been going
on around the world because
history will repeat if we don't
pay attention.”
The Whispering Voices of
Smyrna and other titles by Karavasilis are available at amazon.com.
bled eggs for a tasty brunch
dish. Preserved varieties of wild
artichokes in jars are available
to use in recipes and salads, but
large fresh ones can also be cut
up into bite-sized pieces and
used. Artichokes with potatoes
(Aginares me patates) is a favorite springtime recipe to enjoy.
Artichokes and
Potatoes (Aginares me
Patates)
6 medium to large artichokes
6 medium potatoes
2 bunches scallions, diced
2 fresh lemons
4 tablespoons Greek extra
virgin olive oil
2 cups water
1 bunch fresh dill, chopped
Greek sea salt
Freshly ground pepper
To prepare the artichokes,
rinse in cool water, then remove
them to the pot along with the
water, the juice of one lemon,
about half of the fresh dill, 1
teaspoon of salt and freshly
ground pepper to taste. Bring to
a boil over medium high heat,
then reduce to medium, and
simmer, stirring occasionally,
until the potatoes are cooked,
but not disintegrated, and the
artichokes are tender. You may
need to add additional water if
the pot dries out and the potatoes and artichokes are not quite
cooked through. Add additional
dill at the end for freshness, and
adjust the salt and pepper to
taste, if needed. Additional
lemon juice may also be added,
if desired. Serve warm with
slices of fresh bread as a Lenten
or vegan/vegetarian main dish
or as a side dish for your favorite roasted meats during
non-fasting periods. For a shortcut, try the recipe with Greek
frozen artichokes, such as Barba
Stathis brand.
GREEK AMERICAN STORIES
More Stupidity
By Phyllis (Kiki) Sembos
Special to The National Herald
There seems no shortage of
people saying stupid things, me
included. But, when it is said by
someone in public life – that’s
embarrassing! Anyway, I’ve collected a few to just entertain you.
The American Library Association has contributed these from
Library patrons: I have an emergency and I need the telephone
number of 911. Another patron:
Can you tell me why so many
Civil War battles were fought in
National Parks?”
This from the great baseball
player Yogi Berra: “We made too
many wrong mistakes!” (Thank
goodness for car manuals)
Honda CRX owner’s manual: If
you crash, you can be injured.”
(Really?) And: The fuel level
gauge indicates the quantity of
fuel in the tank. This from a
Volvo manual: “To stop the vehicle, release the accelerator
pedal and apply brakes.”
Food labels can be helpful.
This one from Nabisco’s Easy
Cheese label: “For best results,
remove cap”. From a bottled soft
drink label: “Twist top off with
hands, throw away top.” On a
cereal box: “To best enjoy our
cereal, open box.” (Now, that’s
being helpful)
President George W. Bush:
“Our nation must come together
to unite.” (Gee, I wish I’d said
that.) Police detective questioning wounded officer: “Can you
hear me? Squeeze once for yes
and twice for no.” Vice President
Dan Quayle at job training center
in Atlanta: “If you give a person
a fish, they’ll fish for a day. But,
if you train a person to fish they’ll
fish for a lifetime.” (No time off?)
Classified ad in England’s,
Evening Mail: “For sale, 20 toilet
rolls, hardly used, Xmas bargain”. (I’ll pass)
Phone company sent this letter: Dear Mr. Cook; we have attempted on several occasions to
reach you by phone to discuss
payment of your telephone account – which was recently disconnected.” Here’s another from
Vice president Dan Quayle: “It
isn’t pollution that’s harming the
environment. It’s the impurities
in our air and water that are doing it.”
Headline in the Hendersonville Times (Mississippi): Illiteracy is still a poblem among Mississippi adults. (I think he’s
right!) Headline in Norfolk, VA
pilot pamphlet: “How to speak
and write like a colleg graduat.”
(No diploma for them)
On an American Airlines
packet of nuts: Instructions:
“Open packet, eat nuts”. (Why
didn’t I think of that?) From
President Gerald Ford: “Mr.
Nixon was the thirty-seventh
president of the United States.
He had been preceded by thirtysix others.”(We can tell math was
his good subject). Bank robber
in Maryland to teller: “Give me
$418 – and, no ones”. Another
bank robber who handed this
note to teller: “Milk, loaf of bread
and pick up laundry.” Newspaper
headline on perpetrator, Harris
Pope: “Pope to be arraigned for
allegedly burglarizing Clinic” (I
guess anyone can be a criminal).New Jersey Police Department announcement: “We shall
offer police jobs to qualified
women regardless of sex”. Detective unit in Miami: “We have
a lot of factual information that
has led to speculation.” (That
clears things up.) Secretary of
Defense, Donald Rumsfeld at a
pentagon briefing on what President George W. Bush had said:
Needless to say, the president is
correct – whatever it was he
said.” (That’s clarifying things.)
Sportscaster, Ray French: “And,
he’s got an ice pack on his groin
there, so it’s possibly not a shoulder injury.” Ohio newspaper:
“He told police that one of the
men menaced him with a wench
while the other covered him with
a revolver.” Speed checked by
police officer questioned by
lawyer: “Yes, my radar was malfunctioning correctly.”
From the Literary Review:
“For most people, death comes
at the end of their lives.” (Timing
sounds right!) And, my favorite:
“What would you like most for
Christmas”, was asked of various
ambassadors: French Ambassador: “Peace in the world.”
Russian Ambassador: “Freedom
for all people enslaved by imperialism.” British Ambassador, Sir
Oliver Franks: “Well, it’s very
kind of you to ask. I’d quite like
a box of crystallized fruit.”
8
COMMUNITY / OBITUARIES / CLASSIFIEDS
THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 11-17, 2017
CLASSIFIEDS
HELP WANTED
LEGAL NOTICE
ADVERTISING SALES REPRESENTATIVES
for our Greek and English language
newspapers and websites. Good
communication, organizational and
interpersonal skills a must. Basic
salary + commission. Send CV to:
[email protected]
118679/2/4-01
Notice of formation of MVC CONSULTING
GROUP, LLC Articles of Organization filed
with the Secretary of State of New York
(SSNY) on 11/29/2016. Office location: Kings
County. SSNY has been designated for service
of process. SSNY shall mail copy of any process
served against the LLC to: Corporate Filings
of New York, 90 State Street, Ste 700, Office
40, Albany, NY 12207. Purpose: Any lawful
purpose.
275619/20276
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of formation of Hunter – Sterlin, LLC.
Articles of Organization filed with the
Secretary of State of New York SSNY on
11/01/2016. Office located in Nassau County.
SSNY has been designated for service of
process. SSNY shall mail copy of any process
served against the LLC 14 Garnet Pl. Elmont,
11003.
Purpose:
Any
NY
lawful purpose.
275675/20314
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of formation of 148 29TH STREET LLC.
Articles of Organization filed with the
Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on
01/06/2017. Office location: NASSAU County.
SSNY has been designated for service of
process. SSNY shall mail copy of any process
served against the LLC to 148 29TH STREET
LLC PO BOX 39 28 MAPLE PLACE
MANHASSET, NY, 11030. Purpose: Any lawful
purpose.
LEGAL NOTICE
275578/20251
Notice of Formation of UNIQUE ACHIEVERS
DAYCARE, LLC (DOM LLC). Articles of the
Organization were filed with the Secretary
of State of New York (SSNY) on 11/28/16.
Office location: Kings County. SSNY has been
designated as agent of the LLC upon whom
process against it may be served. SSNY shall
mail a copy of process to: c/o United States
Corporation Agents, Inc., 7014 13th Avenue,
Suite 202, Brooklyn, NY 11228.. Purpose: For
any lawful purpose.
275659/20305
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of formation of DSM UNIVERSAL
ENTERPRISES LLC Articles of Organization
filed with the Secretary of State of New York
(SSNY) on 02/21/2017. Office location:
Nassau County. SSNY has been designated
for service of process. SSNY shall mail copy
of any process served against the LLC to:
DSM UNIVERSAL ENTERPRISES LLC, PO BOX
1029, Valley Stream, NY 11582. Purpose: Any
lawful purpose.
LEGAL NOTICE
STENN USA LLC. Art. of Org. filed w/ SSNY
1/30/17. Office in NY Co. SSNY designated
for service of process and shall mail to Reg.
Agent: Thomas Law Firm PLLC, 175 Varick
St, NY, NY 10014. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
275616/18796
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of Formation of HICKSVILLE
MITHAAS, LLC (DOM LLC). Articles of the
Organization were filed with the Secretary
of State of New York (SSNY) on 01/30/17.
Office location: Nassau County. SSNY has been
designated as agent of the LLC upon whom
process against it may be served. SSNY shall
mail a copy of process to the LLC at: Sukhmani
Jasuja, 12 Pinedale Road, Smithtown, NY
11788. Purpose: For any lawful purpose.
275614/20272
LEGAL NOTICE
275655/20298
LEGAL NOTICE
PHOTOS: TNH/STEliOS XXXX
Greek Community Welcomes Antetokounmpo in Philadelphia
IRAM CLEANING SERVICES LLC. Art. of
Org. filed w/ SSNY 8/31/16. Office in NY
Co. SSNY designated for service of process
and shall mail to: 1150 Tiffany St. Apt 6H.
Bronx, NY 10459. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
275653/18796
The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Philadelphia 76ers 112-98, at the crowded Wells Fargo Center where 1,500 members of the
Greek community cheered for “Greek Freak” Giannis Antetokounmpo who finished with a game-high 24 points to go with eight
rebounds, five assists, three blocks, and two steals. Greek Night on March 6 featured a performance by the ZITO Dance group
from Lancaster, PA before the game, 16-year-old Greek-American Elena Iliadis singing the National Anthem with 10 Greek children, “Anthem Buddies,” standing next to the Sixers players, and a halftime performance by the Macedonia Dance group of
Philadelphia. After the game, Antetokounmpo came out to speak with the Greek fans, sign autographs, and take photos.
LEGAL NOTICE
MEDMALUSA LLC. Art. of Org. filed with
the SSNY on 01/17/17. Office: Kings
County. SSNY designated as agent of the
LLC upon whom process against it may be
served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to
the LLC, 332 88th Street, Brooklyn, NY
11209. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.
275649/17973
LEGAL NOTICE
DEATH NOTICES
n ANTIPAS, GEORGE S.
STAMFORD, CT (from the
Stamford Advocate, published
on Feb. 23) – George S. Antipas,
86, of Stamford, passed away in
the small hours on Tuesday, February 21 after a brief but valiant
struggle, surrounded by family
and friends. Born February 16,
1931 in Brooklyn, New York to
the late Constantine S. Antipas
and Tereza (neé Cavadias) Antipas, he spent his childhood at
his ancestral home in AntipataErissou, Cephalonia, Greece
from 1934 until his return to
Brooklyn in 1946. He moved
with his family to Queens in
1949, after which he was called
to service during the Korean
War, serving in the United States
Army Field Artillery from 1950
to 1952. Following his honorable discharge, he attended and
received his Bachelor of Science
degree in 1958 from the New
York University School of Commerce, Accounts and Finance.
He began his career as an office
equipment salesman for Sperry
Rand, but soon moved to publishing, which he found more
intellectually satisfying. He
worked for Doubleday & Co.,
World Publishing Co., and Lane
Publishing Company, first as a
salesman, and then as sales
manager for the East Coast. He
moved to selling real estate in
1986, spending many years affiliated with Century 21 of
Stamford, and later the Higgins
Group. George was active for
many years at the St. Nicholas
Greek Orthodox Church, helping to fund the church's move
from Flushing to Bayside,
Queens, and then at the Church
of the Archangels, following his
family's move from Queens,
New York to Stamford, Connecticut in 1974. He is survived
by his wife of 57 years, Katina
Antipas of Stamford; his son
Constantine G. Antipas of Mystic, his wife Amy, and their children Alexander, Theodore, and
Zoë; his son Peter K. Antipas of
Trumbull, his wife Christine,
and their children Michael and
George; and his daughter Terry
Brogan of Milford, her husband
Colin P. Brogan, and their children Patrick and Grace. He is
also survived by his sister
Katherine Theophilou of Athens
Greece, niece Marilyn Klimpke,
grandnephew
Alexander
Klimpke, and many cousins,
nieces, and nephews.George
was a sober, thoughtful, and
hardworking man, generous
with time and treasure, eminently worthy of the respect accorded him. His love was pure,
and his faith sure. He will be
greatly missed by family and
friends. A funeral service will be
held at 11:30 a.m. Saturday,
February 25, at the Church of
the Archangels at 1527 Bedford
Street in Stamford, with the Rev.
Dr. Harry Pappas officiating. Interment at Putnam Cemetery in
Greenwich will be followed by
a traditional "makaria" or
memorial luncheon at the
church. Friends may call at the
Nicholas F. Cognetta Funeral
Home & Crematory, 104 Myrtle
Avenue in Stamford from 4:00
p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Friday, February 24, 2017. A Trisagion
prayer service will be held at
7:00 p.m. Memorial donations
may be made in lieu of flowers
to the Church of the Archangels,
1527 Bedford Street, Stamford,
CT 06905, either directly to the
church or its Capital Campaign.
n ARGES, CHRIS J.
MUNSTER, IN (from the
Chicago Tribune, published on
Feb. 23) – Chris J. Arges, 87, of
Munster, passed away peacefully on Tuesday at Vibra Hospital of Northwestern Indiana.
Chris was born in Tripoli,
Greece, to the late Vasiliki and
Dimitrios Arges (Argyropoulos)
immigrating with his family to
the Indiana Harbor neighborhood of East Chicago at age 7.
He leaves behind his wife, Ismini with whom he was blessed
to spend 67 years together. He
was a loving father to Jim (Deborah) Arges and Angelo
Boulougouris and the late Rose
Arges Boulougouris, who preceded him in death. He was a
proud grandfather of George
(Themi) Boulougouris, Chris
Boulougouris, Christopher (Allie) Arges, Gina (Peter) Stasnios,
and Dr. Alexandra Arges and
her husband, Daniel Kolodziej;
and great-grandfather to Elijah
and Ismini Grace Arges and
Amelia Arges Kolodziej. He was
also a brother to Gus (Dimitra)
Arges and beloved by many
nieces and nephews as well as
friends. Chris graduated from
East Chicago Washington High
School and was a member of the
St. George Greek Orthodox
Church in Hammond. He was
retired from Inland Steel and
Standard Forge and also served
as a former Democratic Precinct
Committeeman in Munster.
Memorial donations can be
made to St. Demetrios Greek
Orthodox
Church,
7021
Hohman Ave., Hammond in lieu
of flowers.
n CHRISOVITSIOTIS,
zAHARIAS
CHICAGO, IL (from the Chicago
Tribune, published on Feb. 20)
– Zaharias Chrisovitsiotis; 77;
Born in Tsouni, Sparti, Greece;
Beloved husband of Evanthia
(nee Xidi); Devoted father of
Kathy (Mike) Siciliano and Tim
(Christina); Cherished grandfather of Zak, Steve, Zoi, and Zak
M.; Loving brother of Maria (the
late Antonios) Koufos and Diamando
(Panagiotis)
Michalopoulos; Dearest brotherin-law of Andreas (the late
Eleni) Xidis and Poppy (the late
Peter) Kossivas; Dear Uncle of
George and Jimmy Kossivas and
many other relatives in USA,
Canada and Greece. Visitation
Wednesday February 22, 2017
from 4 - 9 p.m. at Salerno's
Galewood Chapels 1857 N.
Harlem Ave. Chicago, Ill., Funeral Thursday 9 a.m. from the
funeral home to Holy Trinity
Greek Orthodox Church 6041
W. Diversey Chicago for 10:00
a.m. Funeral service. Interment
will follow to Elmwood Cemetery. Arrangements by Nicholas
M. Pishos Funeral Director, Ltd.,
info: 773-745-1333.
n COmBITCHI, NICHOLAS
"NICK"
ERIE, PA (from the Erie TimesNews, published on Feb. 24) –
Nicholas "Nick" Combitchi, age
82, of Erie, passed away peacefully, on Wednesday, February
22, 2017, at HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital. He was born
on January 15, 1935, in Thessaloniki Greece, the son of the
late Apostolos and Arhondia
(Psomiades) Combitsis Lazaros.
He emigrated to the U.S. in
1946 with his brother, the Very
Rev. Constantine Combitsis and
his sister Presbytera Helen Nacopoulos. He graduated from
Crane Technical School in
Chicago then enlisted in the U.S.
Army serving for twenty-two
years. During that time, he
served three tours in Korea and
three tours in Vietnam as a
Green Beret in the Special
Forces (expert paratrooper) and
received multiple medals and
accommodations including two
Purple Hearts and three Bronze
Stars. Nick retired in 1973 with
a rank of E8 Master Sergeant
and continued his service with
the U.S. Government as an intelligence liaison to Greece until
1976. In June of 1976, the family moved to the U.S. from
Greece and settled in Erie where
Nick enrolled at Gannon College
and obtained his degree in mechanical engineering. He was
employed at Starlite Plastics
(later Multi-Products) as the operations manager. In 1984 he
started his career at Met Life Insurance as a sales rep, then
branch manager, and finally retired as a financial planner. He
was always dedicated to the service of the Greek Orthodox
Church and was instrumental in
the building of the new church
on West Lake Road. He was the
first co-chair of the Annual
Greek Festival. He also had a
lifetime dedication to the service
of
veterans,
specifically
wounded vets. He held several
leadership positions with the
Military Order of Purple Hearts
Chapter 197 Erie, Pa. and the
Disabled American Veterans
Chapter 73, Adjutant for the
Commonwealth of PA and Commander (MOPH), Treasurer
(DAV). He was a lifetime member of the American Legion, the
VFW and several other military
organizations. He was instrumental in acquiring the funding
for the erection of both the Purple Heart and the Korean War
Memorials located in Erie on
26th and State Streets. He enjoyed coin collecting and spendDays and dates of funerals,
memorials, and other events
directly correspond to the
original publication date, which
appears at the beginning of each
notice.
ing time with his family. Nick
was preceded in death by his
former wife Danielle Lizeroux
Lei and a niece Maria (Combitsis) Kane. He is survived by his
children Daniel Combitsis, D.O.
(Renee Lee) of Livermore, Calif.
and
Mary-Helen
Russell
Wentzell (Shawn) of Erie, four
grandchildren: Danielle and
Thomas Russell and Jordan and
Annelyse Combitsis, one brother
the Very Rev. Constantine Combitsis (Arghyroula) of New York,
one sister Helen Nacopoulos
(the Very Rev. Theofanis) of
Fairview, two nieces and three
nephews. Friends may call at
the Dusckas-Martin Funeral
Home and Crematory, Inc., 4216
Sterrettania Rd., on Friday, February 24, 2017 (today) from 7
p.m. to 9 p.m. with a Trisagion
Service at 8:00 p.m. Further visitation will be held on Saturday,
February 25, 2017 at the funeral
home from 9:00 a.m. until
10:30 a.m. followed by a Funeral Liturgy at 11:00 a.m. at
the Assumption Greek Orthodox
Church, 4376 West Lake Rd.,
Erie, PA 16505. A full military
honor will be presented at the
church following the service. His
final resting place will be at Arlington National Cemetery. In
lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Boots
on Ground, Palace Centre, 913
State Street, Suite 220-230,
Erie, PA 16501, or Assumption
Greek Orthodox Church.
n KOKOLIS, SEVASTI
BETHLEHEM, PA (from the
Morning Call, published on Mar.
3) – Sevasti "Sylvia" Kokolis, 94
of Bethlehem died on March 2,
2017. She was born on February
20, 1923 in Oinousses, Greece,
daughter of the late George and
Chrysanthi (Economou) Theodossiou. She immigrated to the
United States in 1947 where she
married John E. Kokolis who
died in 1988. During WWII, she
and her family found refuge in
the Belgian Congo where she
supported them as a seamstress.
She, along with her husband,
owned and operated John's
Lunch on Main Street in Bethlehem from 1962-1967. Subsequently she worked for Hess's
and, then, Bon-Ton in Allentown
for 35 years. Sylvia was a member of St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Bethlehem.
Survivors: Her sons George
Kokolis, his friend Donna Andrew and Emmanuel Kokolis,
his wife Donna. She was predeceased by brothers John and
Panagiotis. Services: There will
be a viewing on Sunday from 6
to 8 PM at the John F. Herron
Funeral Home, 458 Center
Street Bethlehem. Funeral Service on Monday, March 6, 2017
at 11 AM, with a viewing
from10:30 AM to 11 AM in St.
Nicholas Greek Orthodox Cathedral 1607 West Union Blvd.
Bethlehem. Contributions: In
her memory to the Cathedral or
the American Macular Degeneration Foundation care of the funeral home.
Notice of formation of ROOSEVELT REAL
ESTATE GROUP, LLC Articles of Organization
filed with the Secretary of State of New York
(SSNY) on 01/26/2017. Office location:
Nassau County. SSNY has been designated
for service of process. SSNY shall mail copy
of any process served against the LLC to: c/o
United States Corporation Agents, Inc., 7014
13th Avenue, Suite 202, Brooklyn, NY 11228.
Purpose: Any lawful purpose.
275646/20293
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of formation of FRED SANICOLA, LLC
Articles of Organization filed with the
Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on
10/12/2016. Office location: Kings County.
SSNY has been designated for service of
process. SSNY shall mail copy of any process
served against the LLC to: The LLC, Fred Sanicola, 2 Northside Piers #12A, Brooklyn, NY
11249. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.
275641/20292
LEGAL NOTICE
PLUSWORKS LLC. Art. of Org. filed w/
SSNY 2/10/17. Office in Kings Co. SSNY
designated for service of process and shall
mail to: The LLC, 81 Prospect St, Brooklyn,
NY 11201. Purpose: Any lawful activity.
Notice of Qualification of DDK/WE HOTELS
MANAGEMENT INDIANAPOLIS LLC
Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 01/24/17. Office location: Kings County.
LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 01/06/17.
SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom
process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail
process to c/o Corporation Service Co., 80 State
St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC:
2711 Centerville Rd., Ste. 400, Wilmington, DE
19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State,
Div. of Corps., John G. Townsend Bldg., 401
Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose:
Hotel Management.
275613/17976
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of Formation of DENEX PROPERTIES
LLC (DOM LLC). Articles of the Organization
were filed with the Secretary of State of New
York (SSNY) on 01/06/17. Office location:
Nassau County. SSNY has been designated as
agent of the LLC upon whom process against it
may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of
process to: Spiegel & Utrera P.A., P.C., 1
Maiden Lane, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10038.
For any lawful purpose.
Purpose:
275603/20267
LEGAL NOTICE
PRIMA JEWELS USA, LLC. Art. of Org. filed w/
SSNY 1/25/17. Office in NY Co. SSNY
designated for service of process and shall
mail to: The LLC, 42 WEST 48TH ST, STE
1605, NY, NY 10036. Purpose: Any lawful
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activity
275602/18796
LEGAL NOTICE
NOTICE OF FORMATION OF LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY. NAME: FAMILY GROUP 200,
LLC. Articles of the Organization were filed
with the Secretary of State of New York
(SSNY) on 01/13/17. Office location: Kings
County. SSNY has been designated as agent of
the LLC upon whom process against it may be
served. SSNY shall mail a copy of process to
the LLC, 31 Brighton 3rd Walk, Brooklyn, New
York, 11235. Purpose: For any lawful purpose.
275611/20229
FUNERAL HOmES
275639/18796
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of formation of MAZARAKIS
CONSULTING LLC Articles of Organization
filed with the Secretary of State of New York
(SSNY) on 02/10/2017. Office location:
Nassau County. SSNY has been designated
for service of process. SSNY shall mail copy of
any process served against the LLC to:
MAZARAKIS CONSULTING LLC, 175 High
Farms Road, Glen Head, NY 11545. Purpose:
Any lawful purpose.
275637/20286
LEGAL NOTICE
Notice of formation of 300SN LLC Arts. of Org.
filed with the Sect'y of State of NY (SSNY) on
2/11/2013. Office location, County of Kings.
SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC
upon whom process against it may be served.
SSNY shall mail process to: 500 4th Ave., #3,
Brooklyn NY 11215 now to 38 S. Station Plaza,
Great Neck NY 11021. Purpose: any lawful act.
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146 HALSEY LLC Articles of Org. filed NY Sec.
of State (SSNY) 1/18/2017. Office in Kings
Co. SSNY desig. agent of LLC upon whom
process may be served. SSNY shall mail copy
of process to 146 Halsey St., Brooklyn, NY
11216.
Purpose: Any lawful purpose.
Principal business location: 64 Washington
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LEGAL NOTICE
NOTICE OF FORMATION OF LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY. NAME: GEMSSD REALTY, LLC.
Articles of Organization were filed with the
Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on
01/26/2017. Office location Nassau County.
SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC
upon whom process against it may be served.
SSNY shall mail a copy of the process to the
LLC, 165 Chestnut Drive, East Hills, NY
11576. Purpose: For any lawful purpose.
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GREECE CYPRUS
THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 11-17, 2017
9
Billionaire Ross, Now Commerce Secretary, Pushed Russians off Cyprus
TNH Staff
While the White House has
mysteriously remained mum,
Cypriot officials said when new
Commerce Secretary and billionaire Wilbur Ross was on the
board of the troubled Bank of
Cyprus, he not only didn’t deal
with Russians – including one
close to Russian President
Vladimir Putin – but that he
helped purge them.
When Ross was being vetted
for his position, questions were
raised as to whether he too –
like some others in the Trump
Administration – were linked to
Russian agents or other officials
as questions arose about Russian hacking influencing the
American presidential election
to skew it in favor of Republican
Donald Trump’s surprise win.
Ross invested in the bank as
it hit near rock-bottom in 2013
after, along with other Cypriot
banks, losing billions of euros
in their holdings in devalued
Wilbur Ross
Greek bonds and bad loans to
failed Greek businesses.
That crisis led then-new
Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades to renege on campaign
promises and agree to confiscate
47.5 percent of bank accounts
over 100,000 euros ($105,790),
bringing hundreds of millions of
euros in losses to big Russian
depositors amid reports the island was a tax haven and hiding
place for black money.
But that also led to six Russians – with no banking experience – getting shares in the
Bank of Cyprus and seats on the
board, along with Ross, who
had served there with a Russian,
Vladimir Strzhalkovsky, who
had worked with Putin in the
Russian spy agency KGB.
That prompted concern that
Ross may have been friendly to
Russians, but the New York
Times in an extensive review reported that it was just the opposite and that he was not tied
to Trump’s fondness for the
Russian President.
According
to
bankers,
lawyers, and others who have
worked closely with the Bank of
Cyprus, within months of Ross’
becoming a shareholder in the
summer of 2014, all six Russians
who were on the board when
he
arrived,
including
Strzhalkovsky, were forced out.
“He has not been an accomplice of the Russians but the opposite,” Loizos Hadjicostis, President of the Cyprus Union of
Bank Employees, told the Times.
“Ross came in to block the
Russians, not to help them,” he
added. “The theory that Ross is
a Russian Trojan horse does not
make any sense to me.”
But the White House - Ross’s
objections — refused to release
his written responses to questions posed by United States
Senators.
In a speech in the Senate,
Senator Bill Nelson, a Florida
Democrat, complained that the
White House was “sitting on”
the replies.
Nelson said he had spoken
with Ross about the Bank of
Cyprus and had been told that
Ross had one meeting of about
an hour with a Russian investor
in the lender in 2014.
“He knows of no loans or interaction between the bank or
anyone affiliated with the
Trump campaign or organization,” the Senator said. He
added that he believed. Ross
and that he could not understand the White House’s “secretive behavior.”
“Not only is this lack of transparency unsettling, it’s behavior
that everyone in this Senate
should agree is unacceptable
and shouldn’t be tolerated,”
Sen. Nelson said.
Ross brought some 30 investors to the bank in a 400-million euro ($423.18 million) infusion of cash.
“Wilbur Ross was kind of a
savior,” Andreas Neocleous, the
founder and Chairman of the
biggest law firm in Cyprus,
which bears his name and has
many Russian clients told the
newspaper.
They included Dmitri Ry-
bolovlev, a Russian billionaire
who paid $95 million in 2008
to buy a Florida mansion from
Trump, who had purchased it
for less than half that just a few
years earlier but who had tense
relations with Putin and the
Kremlin.
Christodoulous Vassiliades,
the Managing Director of a
Cypriot legal firm that represented some of the former Russian board members, said the
Russians didn’t put up a fight
with Ross because they, too, saw
him as a White Knight who
could prevent further losses.
It was clear, he said, that
“Ross was there to benefit the
interests of the U.S. and
Britain,” Cyprus’ former colonial
ruler, but the Russians “just
wanted their money back” and
went along.
Ross became Vice Chairman
of the bank in November, 2014
and gave up this position after
his confirmation as Commerce
Secretary.
Beleaguered Greece Wants World Bank Aid Now NY, NJ Politicians Ask Trump
Continued from page 1
The report, citing unnamed
“people familiar with the situation” said that, “Preliminary
talks have taken place indeed
with (the World Bank) but we
cannot confirm official application,” attributing it only to a
government official in Athens.
It wasn’t reported whether
any prospective new rescue
funding would go toward creating jobs in the private sector
or to hire more public workers
after the Troika has for seven
years demanded cuts in the
workforce.
The World Bank, nevertheless, declined to specify how
much money the Tsipras government requested, Politico reported, but the British newspaper The Guardian said it was for
three billion euros.
The paper said the request
shows the desperation in Greece
with not only joblessness but
poverty growing. The Cologne
Institute for Economic Research
said poverty in thrice-bailed out
Greece had jumped 40% between 2008 and 2015, by far
the biggest leap of any European country.
Dimitris Hatzinikolaou, a
Professor of Economics at the
University of Ioannina in northern Greece, told The National
Herald the move smacked of
how anxious the government is
over the lingering crisis that it
needs to approach the World
Bank.
“They’re supposed to loan
money to developing countries
to do good,” he said. “I’m very
pessimistic about the situation.
Everything has been designed
to destroy this country and sell
it for a sum,” he said of the
bailouts and SYRIZA’s role.
“Everything goes back to the
lenders to repay the loans and
there’s nothing for the real economy. They’re not saving anybody or anything, they’re
putting the country into huge
debt,” he added.
The European Union also
said it was in contact with the
World Bank to look at the issue
of a loan to Greece, which got
money from another Washington institution, the International
Monetary Fund, from the first
two rescue packages of 240 billion euros ($253.29 billion)
starting in 2010.
EU Commission spokeswoman Annika Breidthardt said,
the "Greek authorities have signaled that they would like to
push ahead with further active
labor market policies and one
of those avenues would be
through approaching the World
Bank."
Greece has requested an unknown amount of "financial assistance" from the World Bank
even as bailout talks continue
amid government officials and
representatives of the country's
international creditors, Politico
said.
“The government of Greece
has asked the World Bank to
provide technical and financial
assistance to address pressing
challenges including: long-term
unemployment, economic competitiveness and growth and social protection,” Politico cited a
spokesperson from the World
Bank as saying in a statement.
“In accordance with World
Bank procedures, any final decision on providing loans would
be subject to approval by the
bank’s board of executive directors,” it added.
Greece’s current creditors
“are not too happy about” the
fresh request for funds, an EU
official was quoted as saying.
The report also cited an unnamed government source as
saying that negotiations were
under way but not confirming
the alleged request for a loan.
“Preliminary talks have taken
place indeed with [the World
Bank] but we cannot confirm
official application,” the source
was quoted as saying.
Turkey’s Aegean Sabre-Rattling Worries US Ambassador
Continued from page 1
“As Greece demonstrates its
commitment to reform and
builds additional trust with its
creditors, I am convinced that
new investments, both by foreign investors and domestic
ones, will buoy the economy
and create new jobs,” he added.
Pyatt said that the U.S. government was eager to see U.S.
companies expand existing investments and invest in new
ventures in Greece.
“One of the things we’re
working on this year at the Embassy is a road show and a trade
mission planned for June in the
United States. We are also engaged with the American phar-
U.S. Ambassador to Greece
Geoffrey Pyatt
maceutical industry and the
Greek government to support a
healthcare investment initiative,” he said.
Pyatt also noted the role of
NATO and bilateral ties. “I want
to see Greece play an even
greater role as a pillar of regional stability,” he added.
Greek President Prokopis
Pavlopoulos, responding to the
Turkish provocations, said they
are no “gray zones” in the
Aegean Sea, and said bellicose
rhetoric from Ankara is threatening the sovereignty of Greece
and the European Union.
Pavlopoulos spoke during a
visit to the Southeastern Aegean
island of Rhodes for events to
commemorate the annexation
of the Dodecanese chain of islands to Greece. The islands
were ceded to Greece in full sovereignty by the Paris Peace
Treaty between Italy and the Allies in April 1947.
“In the Dodecanese region
there can, in terms of international law, be no ‘gray zones’ regarding the extent and content
of Greek and European sovereignty,” Pavlopoulos said,
Kathimerini reported, adding
that Greece maintained “a selfevident right” to defend the territory against any outside threat.
“Greece is determined, on
the basis of international… and
European law, to defend its borders, its territorial integrity and
its sovereignty,” he said.
This Week in Greek History
Compiled by
Eraklis Diamataris
mARCH 6: On this day in 1977 Greek
footballing icon Giorgos Karagounis was
born in Pyrgos, Greece. The midfielder appeared in over 400 matches during his professional career
with the majority coming in
the shirt of his
b e l o v e d
Panathinaikos
where
he
played
from
1996-2003 and
again
from
2007-2012.
Karagounis is
known over the
footballing
world as one of
the main cogs
in Otto Rehagel’s surprise
Greek team that
were crowned
European
champions in
2004. For the
national team,
Karagounis is the player with the most appearances (139) and scored 10 goals in
those appearances. Giorgos Karagounis also
featured for Apollon Smyrnis, Benfica, Inter
Milan and Fulham in his career. His winner’s
medals include the Coppa Italia 2004-2005,
the 2009-2010 Greek Superleague and
Greek Cup of the same year and most famously Euro 2004 with the Greek National
Team.
mARCH 8: On this day in 1907 Greek
politician and Prime Minister Konstantinos
Karamanlis was born in Proti, Macedonia.
At the time of his birth, the village he was
born in continued to be under Ottoman Empire control. Konstantinos Karamanlis is routinely ranked as one of Modern Greece’s
most important political figures in a public
service career that spanned over 50 years.
First under the flag of a party he founded
in 1955 called National Radical Union,
Karamanlis sought to create a politically
conservative counterbalance in Greece. The
party folded in 1967 during the first year
of the military junta whereby Karamanlis
went into exile in Paris. Upon the fall of the
junta in 1974, Karamanlis was asked by a
provisional government to come back to
Greece and right the ship. Upon hearing
that he was inbound to Athens spontaneous
rallies with the chant “he’s coming” were
held all across Greece heralding his arrival
as Athenians rushed to greet him at the airport. Konstantinos Karamanlis and his
newly founded New Democracy party
swiftly stabilized the country and reauthorized the Communist Party of
Greece to operate which
was a controversial decision at the
time
but
widely considered necessary.
Additionally,
Karamanlis
freed all political prisoners
and pardoned
political crimes
committed
during
the
junta regime.
Karamanlis
served as Prime Minister of Greece four
times: from 1955-1958, 1958-1961, 19611963 and finally from 1974 to 1980. Upon
his term ending in 1980 Karamanlis became
President of Greece until 1985 during the
premierships of Georgios Rallis and Andreas
Papandreou. He would be reelected as President in 1990 and end his term in 1995 during the premierships of Konstantinos Mitsotakis and the final term of Andreas
Papandreou. Konstantinos Karamanlis was
one of the few Greek politicians in the modern era with incredible foresight. He began
lobbying his countrymen of greater European inclusion as an official stance in 1958
and never strayed from that vision. Kara-
manlis declared that “Greece’s European
Destiny” lied in the then named European
Economic Community, today’s European
Union. In May in 1979 in the Zappeion
Hall Karamanlis signed the full treaty of accession with Greece becoming the tenth
member of the EEC which took effect on
January 1, 1981. By bringing Greece closer
to Europe Greece’s dependency on U.S. economic and military aide greatly diminished
and instead fostered better relationships
with fellow European nations and opened
the door for military partnership in NATO.
Karamanlis was credited with fostering
much of the growth that took place in
Greece during the mid 20th century and for
restoring national trust in government following the junta. Konstantinos Karamanlis
died at the age of 91 in 1998 and is buried
in Athens, Greece. His nephew Kostas Karamanlis was also leader of New Democracy
and was Prime Minister of Greece from
2004-2009.
mARCH 12: On this day in 1910 Greek
Pisa-class armored cruiser Georgios Averof
was launched in Livorno, Italy. The ship was
ordered in 1909 by the Italian navy and was
meant to be scrapped as Italy was going
through economically turbulent times. The
Greek government stepped in recognizing
the opportunity to bolster its navy in increasingly uncertain political times and purchased it with the generous donation of affluent Greek businessman Georgios Averof,
namesake of the ship. It is the only armored
cruiser of its kind still in existence. The Georgios Averof possessed Italian engines, French
boilers, German generators and British artillery guns. The ship’s legendary reputation
was sealed by the battles it partook in during
the Balkan Wars when the ship, under the
admiralship of Greek war hero Rear Admiral
Pavlos Kountouriotis, essentially singlehandedly took control of the Aegean Sea during
the naval battles of Elli and Lemnos. After
the Balkan Wars the ship saw limited action
and was decommissioned in August 1952.
The ship was toured to Poros where it remained until 1983 before being rebuilt as a
floating museum in Palaio Faliro where the
ship can be found to this day.
to Stop Emirates’ Flight
NEW YORK (AP) — Twenty-five
members of the New York and
New Jersey Congressional delegation sent a letter asking President Trump to stop a Gulf-based
airline from starting a roundtrip
flight between Newark, New Jersey, and Athens this month, the
latest salvo in a dispute over
claims of unfair competition.
The letter released late Tuesday contends Emirates and other
Gulf airlines have an unfair advantage over American air carriers because they receive billions
in state subsidies.
The group wants Trump to delay the scheduled Sunday commencement of the flight until his
administration can negotiate a
resolution with the airlines.
In a statement Wednesday,
Emirates said Sunday's Newarkto-Athens flight is scheduled to
operate as planned. "We have the
full approvals and support from
the relevant authorities, airports,
and travel communities in both
Newark and Athens".
"It is imperative that your Administration take quick and decisive action to defend U.S. interests abroad and ensure that
U.S. airlines and their American
workers have a fair and equal op-
portunity to compete," the Congressional group wrote.
The leading American airlines
have said Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways have
received billions of dollars in subsidies from their governments, allowing them to offer below-market fares and violating so-called
open-skies treaties.
They say that allows the Gulf
carriers to offer below-market
fares, which could force American carriers to discontinue some
routes and cut jobs.
Tuesday's letter estimated that
"for every long-haul route lost or
foregone as a result of subsidized
Gulf carrier competition, more
than 1,500 American jobs are
lost."
Some smaller U.S. airlines,
and some consumer advocates,
have taken a different view and
say the competition would lead
to lower fares generally.
American, Delta and United
asked Washington to open negotiations with Qatar and the
United Arab Emirates, but the
Obama administration didn't take
action before leaving office.
Emirates and other stateowned Gulf carriers deny accusations.
Disputing Statistics, Tsipras
Says Economy Recovering
Continued from page 1
Tspiras, whose popularity has
plummeted after his constant
reneging on anti-austerity
promises, offered no evidence beyond his repeated assertions he
is leading the country to a recovery despite a raft of information
showing otherwise.
He didn’t mention that he has
asked for help from the World
Bank, which deals mostly with
poor Third World and developing
countries, for help in getting people back to work as the country’s
unemployment rate is still above
23 percent, and 50 percent for
the young.
Tsipras told his cabinet that,
“After seven years of disastrous
recession, the country has already returned to positive rates
of growth,” although ELSTAT’s
figures showed that it hadn’t and
could continue a downfall.
HOLD THAT JUBILEE
Christos Staikouras, speaking
for the major opposition New
Democracy, poked fun at Tsipras’
declaration. “At the exact moment that the Prime Minister is
jubilating, the data are contradicting him,” said Staikouras.
New Democracy leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis said, “While the
Prime minister was proclaiming
the economy’s alleged return to
positive growth rates the data
disproved him, proving New
Democracy’s statements are not
scaremongering. It is an accurate
reflection of the market.”
National Bank economist
Nikos Magginas told Reuters he
expected no growth last year. .
“That stymies, to a small extent,
the positive carry-over effect and
the positive impetus for the following year,” he said, referring
to 2017.
Economists said the most recent data suggested the economy
was stagnant, or showed a marginal contraction last year, compared to previous full-year projections of 0.3 percent growth.
“The data revision points to
full-year 2016 real GDP growth
of -0.1 percent,” Eurobank economist Platon Monokroussos told
the news agency.
Greece’s Gross Domestic Product has shrunk about 25 percent
since then-Premier and former
PASOK Socialist leader George
Papandreou asked for what
turned into three bailouts of 326
billion euros ($345.29 billion)
that have failed to slow an economic slide that’s the debt ratio
rise to 175 percent.
THE SPINNING GAME
Tsipras, spinning the stuck
talks with the Troika as Greece
needs more money released from
the third bailout to make a 7.2billion euro ($7.63 billion) repayment in July, said his government has succeeded and took a
shot at the creditors.
“It is clear that, no matter how
they may want to stall negotiations at a technical level, there is
no turning back. Greece has already turned a page,” he insisted
although he’s also agreed to post2018 pension cuts, taxing the
poor and diluting workers’ rights
that he said would be offset by
countermeasures the lenders
have already rejected.
He also sniped at New
Democracy, with polls showing
the Conservatives have leads as
big as 15 percent in polls after
promising an end to austerity,
which they had also imposed
while ruling a coalition with PASOK before Tsipras’ party twice
thumped them in 2015.
Tsipras also took a dig at the
International Monetary Fund
(IMF), which took part in the first
two bailouts of 240 billion euros
($254.2 billion) but has stayed
out of the third so far until he
agrees to more austerity.
“Some, particularly those who
bear the greatest blame for the
disastrous economic recipes since
2010, may remain unrepentant,”
he said. “But reality has already
passed them by.”
Tsipras said ELSTAT’s figures
were also skewed because of the
uncertainty he blamed the creditors for creating.
“This is a result of the uncertainty which is growing due to
the delay in completing the review, as the government has neither the will nor the ability to extract the country from the crisis,”
he said.
Commenting on ELSTAT’s figures from Brussels, European
Commission spokeswoman Annika Breidthardt said, “We continue to expect growth this year,”
she said, adding that the implementation of the reforms is necessary in order to restore confidence.
EDITORIALS LETTERS
10
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
The National Herald
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THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 11-17, 2017
Appreciation for
Tsavalas Article
To the Editor:
Thank you for the article on
Theodore Tsavalas, icon painter
and uncle of actor Telly Savalas
(“Tsavalas: US’s First Greek
Iconographer,” Feb. 25). I always wondered about the history of the icons and who
painted them, so it was nice to
read the story about Tsavalas. It
is a testament to his great talent
that his work is preserved in
churches across the United
States.
Thank you for this story and
for the many historical articles
The National Herald continues
to provide for the community. It
is important to remember and
appreciate the past and where
we came from.
Aristotle Z. Galanis
Seattle, WA
TO OUR READERS
The National Herald welcomes letters from its readers intended for
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we reserve the right to edit letters for publication and regret that we
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GEOrGE SArAfOGlOu / SPECiAl TO THE NATiONAl HErAlD
COMMENTARY
Knocking on World Bank’s Door
“The government of Greece has asked the World Bank to
provide technical and financial assistance to address pressing
challenges, including long-term unemployment, economic competitiveness and growth, and social protection.” (World Bank)
I let some time pass before commenting on the situation I
found in Greece during my recent trip, so that I might calm
down first. Besides the fact that enough time has passed since
then, there is a recent news item that calls for commentary.
First, my impressions: I wish I could concentrate on the
country’s natural beauty, the blooming almond trees, the amazing sunset, the crystal clear sea, the Acropolis, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center.
I wish I would not have to write about the visibly sad faces
one sees everywhere, about the suicides the relatives conceal
and the media does not report, about the soup kitchens, and
about the woman who stayed with her abusive husband because
she did not have the 200 euros required to divorce him.
I wish there was no need to refer to the conversation I had
with a professional in the financial sector, who described the
situation as being in “shambles,” or to my conversation with a
distinguished businessman, who put his finger on the issue
when told me that “this situation cannot continue any longer.”
No. It cannot, and it will not.
And what is the political situation? The government is simply
not governing. Perhaps because it cannot, but probably because
it does not want to. What it is doing – with some success – is
handling the crises through “communication.” Basically, that
means it is misleading the people; it is concealing the truth and
defaming its opponents, with the help of the terrified media. It
is promising one thing, meaning something else, and doing another.
I seriously doubt the government is dealing with the crux of
the matter or is attempting to address some of the country’s
problems. They use twisted logic for everything; even the most
serious issues, such as national defense, aiming to deceive the
public opinion and extend their stay in power.
But time waits for no one. Government inaction signifies a
deteriorating situation, an increase of financial needs, and ultimately the derailment of economic data, which inevitably leads
to extreme solutions that we could not have had imagine.
Thus, just as former Prime Minister George Papandreou had
no other choice than to invite the IMF into the country, so too –
worse, still – Alexis Tsipras is inviting... the World Bank. But
this is mostly of his own making!
We have hit rock bottom. We are knocking on the door of
the poorest and most mismanaged club of countries in the
world.
For those not familiar with the World Bank’s mission, let me
note that it is “to end extreme poverty globally within a generation and to promote shared prosperity."
It also aims to provide technical assistance to countries whose
state administration is either on the verge of dissolution or
shattered, so that it may enable them to face their biggest problems, such as unemployment, etc.
This is the reality. The sad, harsh, horrid reality.
Everything else is for “communicative” purposes for the natives.
“4.1 Miles” – Now We Know
Nobody becomes a refugee by choice.
War and poverty force people to become refugees. They
reckon that it is preferable to attempt to cross the Aegean, although they may drown, rather than stay in their war-torn land,
in poverty.
The reason why they choose the Aegean, why Greece is the
country of choice for refugees to cross over into Europe, is more
or less known. It has to do with the welcoming policy that the
Tsipras government initially adopted; and it has to do with
Greece’s inability to protect its borders.
However, this column does not intend to attribute responsibility for the wave of refugees, but to express praise, admiration,
and pride for the people serving in the coast guard and who
risk their own lives to save the lives of thousands of their fellow
human beings.
I am specifically referring to people like Captain Kyriakos
Papadopoulos and the crew of a coast guard boat on Lesbos,
into whose arms mankind seems to have placed these refugees’
fate.
I was among the 750 Greek-Americans and others who attended the screening of Daphne Matziaraki’s shocking documentary “4.1 Miles” at the United Nations headquarters, which
was organized by the Permanent Mission of Greece to the UN,
the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, and The New York Times.
It was a contribution to the awakening of our humanity and
a contribution to Greece’s moving humanity which is not recognized often, especially nowadays.
I left the screening at the UN with a sense of guilt for what
is not being done about this issue. I also left feeling fortunate
to have seen Captain Papadopoulos, a man who has been lucky
in life. Yes, lucky, because with his enviable actions – which do
not compare to the ephemeral issues with which we are all occupied – he gave meaning to his life, honored his country, and
gave life to thousands of persecuted human beings.
“For us they were people, above all, just as we are people,”
Papadopoulos said. “They were people who had survived the
war, but we saw them disappearing before our eyes.”
The “war scenes” encountered by the captain, who even saw
parents throw their children aside in order to save themselves,
the psychological weight of this drama – how could it be otherwise? – left their mark on the captain’s face.
He is pure, patriotic, brave, and an authentic hero, who represents and expresses the best in all of us, as a man and as a
Greek.
There is no better attribution of honor and justice in Greece.
Especially today, when the Greek name is treated with much
skepticism.
And, of course, a big bravo and thanks are due to filmmaker
Daphne Matziaraki, a sensitive and talented Greek woman who
could not stay in California – once again, an expat made a miracle happen – and indifferently observe the horrors of the
refugee issue from afar, but instead went to Lesbos, realized
the historic importance of the moment and left us a shocking
monument of horror and humanity intertwined as a legacy.
A documentary that holds us all accountable. Because now
we know.
A Story about a President Bound to Curl Your Hair
This story may sound like a
fictitious political thriller, but it
is absolutely true.
Once upon a time, there was
a man named Joe. All four of
his grandparents were immigrants to the United States from
Ireland, at a time when the two
nations that began with the letter “I” whose people were vilified when the immigrated to
America were not Iran and Iraq,
but Ireland and Italy.
Young and ambitious, Joe
was not about to let his Irish
heritage stand in the way of
achieving great wealth and
power. Legend has it that he
made a fortune bootlegging
booze during Prohibition (19191933), though it is not historically verifiable – which either
means it is entirely untrue, or
that Joe was careful in covering
his tracks. What is true, however, is that Joe had a good deal
of help from his buddy, James,
whose father, Franklin, happened to be president of the
United States at the time, to secure importing contracts with
top manufacturers of liquor in
the United Kingdom – such as
Dewar’s and Gordon’s – just as
Prohibition was about to end in
the United States. Thirsty for a
taste of the good stuff, Americans lapped up liquor legally
once again in 1933 by the barrelful, making Joe a very rich
man. Later on, Franklin appointed Joe U.S. Ambassador to
Britain.
Joe certainly made a lot of
money in industries besides spirits importing: most evidently, in
Hollywood and in high-risk cutthroat speculation on Wall
Street. But the presidency was
the grand prize he most coveted, and it eluded him. Therefore, he switched gears midstream, focusing instead on
passing that torch to his eldest
son and namesake, Joe, Jr.
But it was not to be. The
younger Joe was killed while
flying a combat mission during
WWII, and so the honor would
be bestowed upon the second
son, an intelligent and intellectually curious playboy named
Jack.
And so, in 1960, Jack ran for
president against a fellow
named Dick, who had the advantage of name recognition
over his slightly younger opponent – despite Jack’s prominent
family name – because Dick was
in the final stretch of an eightyear run as vice president of the
United States.
Not one to reaccepting the remain within the
sults for the good of
boundaries
of
the country.
monogamous famNonetheless, Joe
ily life, Jack continwas worried that
ued his wayward
pesky reporters and
ways; cavorting
opposing politicians
with
irreverent
might continue to
celebrities,
not
perpetuate their acleast of which his
cusations of fraud,
pal Frank. Jack and
and so what better
Frank shared an
way to squash any
affinity for lavish
squawking than to
by CONSTANTINOS E.
cocktail parties and
appoint a very
SCAROS
beautiful women,
friendly attorney
including
Judy,
general? For that
Special to
The National Herald
who became one of
vital role, Joe had
Jack’s mistresses,
in mind none other
courtesy of Frank.
than his third son, Jack’s brother
Judy kept company with Bobby. And so it was.
other men, however, including
Turns out, though, Bobby
Sam, a feared mob boss with was not willing to look the other
whom Frank hung around; way regarding mob activity.
Frank reveled in the “bad boy” Soon enough, Bobby launched
aspect of associating with mob- blistering probes into organized
sters, and Sam loved the way crime, even grilling and mockFrank sang.
ing Sam himself on the witness
As Election Day 1960 neared stand. Other gangsters were fuand Joe feared that the votes rious with Sam, and with Frank,
would go Dick’s way, he asked for having lent a helping hand
Frank to see if he could per- to Jack without absolute guarsuade Sam to lean on the labor antees in return.
unions and get them to vote for
Ultimately, Jack was assassiJack. Sam was apparently all nated, as was Bobby, and some
too happy to oblige, as having a suspected the mob was infriendly president in the White volved, particularly conjecturing
House could mean keeping FBI that Sam, directly or indirectly,
probes into organized crime at had something to do with it.
bay.
Joe, Jack, and Bobby, of
Jack eked out one of the nar- course, are Kennedys. Most of
rowest presidential wins in you reading this story already
American history. Amid rampant knew it – but many Americans
speculation of voting fraud, are too young to know. In fact,
Dick’s supporters pleaded with they might be too young to even
him to contest the numbers and recognize what’s left of the
insist on a recount, if not further Kennedy mystique.
investigation. Dick insisted on
I retell the tale in this column
President John F. Kennedy taking that final ride in the motorcade with the First Lady on that fateful day in Dallas.
not to bash the Kennedys, but
to point out that for all the sordid details, Jack (John F.)
Kennedy was a very good president. It matters less how he got
there than what he did once he
arrived. He made it abundantly
clear to every nation, “whether
it wishes us well or ill, that we
shall pay any price, bear any
burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe
to assure the survival and the
success of liberty.” That included
trying to overthrow Fidel Castro
in Cuba, standing up to the Soviet Union’s Nikita Khrushchev,
and ushering in a massive tax
cut on the notion that “a rising
tide lifts all boats.” Yes, indeed,
the rich boy from Massachusetts
proclaimed that: “for the good
of the whole country, the rich
must get richer.” And the liberals loved it.
The line Kennedy is best remembered for is: “ask not what
your country can do for you –
ask what you can do for your
country.” In other words, quit
your whining and bellyaching.
This is not about you. It is about
the United States, and what you
– lucky enough to be part of it –
can do to serve it.
Jack continued his affair with
Judy, even though it was unseemly that the president of the
United States and one of the
country’s most notorious underworld figures concurrently
shared a mistress. But in the
grand scheme of things, that
didn’t matter. Neither did the
fact that he excluded Frank’s
African-American pal Sammy
from attending the Inaugural
Ball because he…gasp…had just
married a white woman.
What mattered was that
Kennedy lit the torch for the
biggest civil rights reform the
nation had seen since the days
of Lincoln.
In the big historical picture,
scandals don’t matter much; results do. Gotcha moments gain
fleeting attention, but good governance establishes legacy.
It would be wise for those
judging any president – such as
the one currently in office – not
by the skeletons in the closet,
but by the content of the entire
house which, of course, is a long
way from being determined.
Constantinos E. Scaros' latest
book, Grumpy Old Party (about
the 2016 presidential election),
is available for purchase on
amazon.com and in bookstores
nationwide.
ANALYSIS
What Does the Sunday of Orthodoxy Mean Today?
By Theodore Kalmoukos
We just celebrated the Sunday of Orthodoxy, as we do traditionally every year on the first
Sunday of the Great Lent. That
celebration should not be simply
a feast of the past, because it
wouldn’t have any meaning for
our lives today. That it happened in the past doesn’t mean
that it discontinues being a
great, sacred, and historic day.
I have the impression that
the Sunday of Orthodoxy tends
to lose its ecclesiastical meaning
and increasingly becomes more
theatric folklore. In a way it
gives the impression of a theatrical play to see all those Archons, bearers of dead titles,
with golden crosses hanging
from their necks and the emblem “Archon” on their jacket
lapels. “Relics” of bygone Byzantium, carrying the holy icons.
Prideful men in the House of
God, giving the impression that
the rest of the congregation is
second or third class. And yet,
we ask why our churches have
emptied today. How can the
young generations tolerate all
these graphic theatrics in the
name of Christ and His Church?
It seems to me that we are
completely unaware about the
symbolism of the litany and the
place of the icons in our Orthodox Church. I will go one step
further to say it seems we are
tragically unsuspicious about
what the Church is and what it is
not. If the litany of the icons remains a simple symbolic and teleturgical act, then I think the real
meaning of the feast is lost. If this
celebration becomes the reason
for the raising of the living icons
of God, which are the human
persons, then we can talk about
Orthodoxy and its essence. If not,
then the rest are ritualism and
theatrics. It is as simple as that.
But, really, what is Orthodoxy, for which time and time
again we state we are so proud
of, and even about? Etymologically speaking, it comes from
two words: orthi and doxa (correct faith) and more precisely
orthi-latreia (correct worship).
In order to have correct worship, you have to have correct
faith, because we celebrate and
worship what we believe. This,
exactly, is our worship: a celebration of faith.
The question, then, is not if
we believe but how we believe.
Even the demons believe and
shudder. The “how” we believe
underlies the essence of Orthodoxy.
Orthodoxy is not some kind
of museum of conservatism and
firmness in some kind of religious values and faithfulness in
ritualistic rubrics and theoretical
ideological beliefs. And the
sooner we realize that, the better. Orthodoxy is the way of existence of the Ecclesial Body. I
think it is time to begin distinguishing what Orthodoxy is
from what Orthodoxy is not, because it seems to me that there
is total confusion between Orthodoxy and Orthodoxology.
Orthodoxy cannot exist outside of the Church. After all,
Christ did not bring a new religion, even one called Christianity.
Rather, He instituted the Church.
The Church is the criterion of Orthodoxy, not the opposite. Faith,
after all, is not the acceptance of
some theoretical religious teachings, but faith is the establishment of a relationship with God
and like every relationship, it
needs constant cultivation,
strengthening, and advancement.
We are talking about some
serious things here that have
nothing to do with the folkloric
litanies of the icons around the
nave by the so-called “Archons.”
Here, we make an attempt to go
beyond the rituals and touch
upon the ontological meaning
of the human person as the living icon of the living God.
This analysis would serve its
purpose if it makes us remember
that each of these – Orthodoxy/Church/Eucharist – is the
presupposition of the other. This
inter-dwelling trifold constitutes
and manifests the ecclesiastical
Orthodoxy.
The Sunday of Orthodoxy is
the par excellence feast of the
holy icons and the iconological
symbols and symbolism. The
gathering in the naves is a Godly
invitation and calling. We have
Apostolic conscience, the same
conscience the called disciples
of Christ had. What unites us is
not some form of a theoretical
Orthodoxology or some kind of
a religious Orthodoxism, but
rather the conscience and its acceptance that has changed our
life. This is what we do in the
nave when we gather together
and form the Church, which
means we live with the dynamics of the relationship in which
we accept to live (to exist), loving and being loved. This is the
other way of existence, the way
of the Church.
THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 11-17, 2017
When Greeks are Waiting
for Cavafy’s Barbarians
neurial
motives
Are the barbarand in systematiians some sort of
cally promoting
solution? During
abroad Greece’s
the event that
cultural and envimarked the hanronmental assets as
dover of SNFCC to
precious touristy
the Greek state,
products.
President Andreas
“Why is our
Dracopoulos underemperor up and
lined that worries
about so early,
shouldn’t lead us to
and seated at the
delirium or paralygrandest gate of
sis and reminded us
by DR. DImITRA
our city, upon the
some verses from
KAmARINOU
throne,
Constantine
in state, wearing
Cavafy’s
poem
Special to
The National Herald
the crown?
“Waiting for the
Because the
Barbarians.” This
poem is a portrayal of a state barbarians will arrive today.
whose lawmakers sit in stagnant And the emperor expects to
idleness waiting for the barbar- receive their leader.
ians. Though written in Novem- Indeed, he has prepared to
ber, 1898 and first published in present him
1904, the poem’s ideas describe with a parchment scroll.
well the present situation in Thereon he has
invested him with many names
Greece.
It is the first of Cavafy’s his- and titles.”
torical poems, where he repre- Though our leaders used to
sents episodes from the Hel- express insulting comments for
lenistic, the Roman and the late the “barbarian” leaders, they
Byzantine era -characterized by are now showing their
political turmoil and glamorous allegiance to them. It is the
way of life- to provoke thought emperor’s attitude to maintain
and to comment on the political his position.
reality. Cavafy said of himself “I ”Why have our two consuls and
am a poietes historikos,” a poet- the praetors come out
historian averting our eyes to today in their purple,
the irony of the simultaneous embroidered togas;
presence of the tragic and the why did they put on bracelets
comic in political life. His poems studded with amethysts,
are realistic and therefore didac- and rings with resplendent,
glittering emeralds;
tic.
why are they carrying today
precious staves
carved exquisitely in gold and
silver?
Because the barbarians will
arrive today
and such things dazzle the
barbarians.”
Which justifications do our
politicians invent for their huge
salaries, these days that Greek
people struggle to pay their
bills?
“And why don’t our worthy
orators, as always, come out
to deliver their speeches, to
have their usual say?
Because the barbarians will
arrive today;
and they get bored with eloquence and orations.”
Constantine Cavafy
Where are our intellectuals
The content is constructed as and thinkers? Why do they reif the action was being shown main silent, why do they avoid
on a theatrical stage, where the to raise their voices and criticize
politicians are the actors and the the political decisions?
“Why has there suddenly bepeople resemble the ancient
drama’s “choros.” “Waiting for gun all this commotion,
and this confusion? (How
the Barbarians” begins with peosolemn people’s faces have beple asking each other:
“What are we waiting for, as- come.)
Why are the streets and the
sembled in the Forum? The barsquares emptying so swiftly,
barians are to arrive today.”
and everyone is returning
The poem is an insightful description of a state that needs home in deep preoccupation?
Because night has fallen and
enemies. To some point they
may be real, but they may also the barbarians have not come.”
Finally people’s faces become
be imaginary. Even before the
enemy shows up, the authorities serious. Their illusion is over.
use his name as a perpetual ex- Everyone is going home so lost
cuse for their irresponsibility in thought. The barbarians will
not come. More than that: there
and inactivity.
“Why then such inactivity in are no barbarians any longer.
“And some people have arthe Senate?
Why do the Senators sit back rived from the frontiers,
and said that there are no
and do not legislate?
Because the barbarians will barbarians anymore.”
Cavafy himself commenting
arrive today.
What sort of laws now can on his poem emphasized that
the poem doesn’t represent the
Senators enact?
When the barbarians come, people desperate due to the failure of their expectation, but
they’ll do the legislating.”
One can hardly find a better worried about what will become
description of Greek govern- of them -given the fact that
ments’ attitude. It is partly true these are the rulers they have.
“And now, what will become
that EU and IMF “will do the
legislating. But given the gravity of us without barbarians?
Those people were some sort
of the situation, Greeks speculate the governments’ bank- of a solution.”
ruptcy of practicality in dealing
with crucial problems and the Dimitra Kamarinou, PhD, has
remarkable lack of any plan to studied philology and archaeolrevitalize the economy; the un- ogy at the University of Ioanniwillingness to enact legislation na,Würzburg and Bochum in
against the corruption, the bu- Germany. She has been
reaucracy, and the inefficiency honored with the Academy of
of the huge state sector; the in- Athens Award in Archaeology
activity in creating entrepre- and Homeric Philology.
VIEWPOINTS
11
Science of the Fathers vs. Rhetoric of Secularization
“The Church has symbolism,
and symbolism speaks louder
than rhetoric.” This quote by
Hellenism’s literary great
Alexandros Papadiamantis remains timeless, even if it was
written over a century ago. It is
a statement that church and
community leaders should heed
more than ever today.
Two recent statements that
typify how rhetoric not rooted
in tradition can end up adulterating the Church’s message and
create slippery slopes of secularization once again verified
the truth behind Papadiamantis’
apophthegm. Although these
statements are merely examples, they represent a trend that
must concern the Church hierarchy and educators of future
clerics because of its corrosive
effect on Orthodox ethos.
The first instance involves an
interview conducted by The National Herald with a senior
Archdiocesan official regarding
a recent scandal, leading to the
indefinite suspension of a priest
for sending sexually explicit
messages. When asked if the
priest will be reinstated, the interviewee replied that he is
waiting for the results of an ongoing psychiatric evaluation.
The reporter’s subsequent
commentary says it all: “In regards to what was said that he
[the priest] is being treated by
a psychiatrist, who will make a
determination months from
now about whether or not he
has straightened out, I think
things have gone a bit too far,
because at the rate we are going, the Church is going to be
governed by psychiatrists, since
he is not the only priest in treatment.”
The Church Fathers, whose
writings predate psychiatry by
well over a millennium, often
compare the Church to a spiritual hospital where people come
to receive therapy. While the
constant references to psychiatric treatment may cover the
demands of insurance compa-
nies and lawyers,
vibrant parish, the
they do very little
celebrant
anto promote the Ornounced to the
thodox perspective
faithful that he
on matters of transwould not be readgression. Certainly
ing all the names of
psychotherapists
the departed that
make a unique conthey had submitted
tribution to society
out loud for their
and have been able
own benefit (sic),
to help many peobecause he didn’t
ple, but it is doubtwant the service to
by Christopher
ful that they could
run too long and
TRIPOULAS
replace “Orthodox
take up their valuSpecial to
Psychotherapy,” as
able time. However,
The National Herald
prescribed by the
he did not spare
therapeutic comthem from a thirtymunity of the Church and the minute sermon… According to
God-bearing Fathers for cen- his perspective, it would appear
turies – especially in matters re- than time ticks differently delated to priesthood.
pending on the activity; it proves
According to Metropolitan too valuable to carry on the cusHierotheos of Nafpaktos, a pro- tom of publicly reading the
lific writer and highly respected names submitted for commemtheologian, “many psychological oration – the very purpose of the
illnesses are caused by the anx- faithful’s presence in church on
iety of death, the lack of mean- that day – but not too precious
ing in life, a guilty conscience, and fleeting to spend half an
and the loss of communion with hour (over four times the tradiGod on man's part. Surely the tionally prescribed seven-minute
theology of the Church can help time limit) (mis)using the pulpit
by either preventing or by heal- for the pleasure of hearings oneing people suffering from such self speak.
existential dilemmas. Thus psyThese two unfortunate exchiatry and neurology are called amples of modern rhetoric were
to cure pathological anomalies, selected because they indicate a
whereas Orthodox theology growing disconnect between
cures the deeper causes that en- Romanity’s traditional hierarchy
gender them.”
of needs and authentic empiriWhile the interviewee might cal standpoint and a spirit of rahave been practicing due dili- tionalism and secularization
gence by continually referencing that has historically signified the
the psychiatric intervention as polar opposite of what the Ora means of defense against pos- thodox faith embodies.
sible legal action, one wonders
Incidentally, since reference
why he did not also find a way was made to the concept of Orto at least highlight and make thodox Psychotherapy, readers
readers aware of authentically are strongly encouraged to read
Orthodox modes of remedy and the book by the same title, writredress, such as repentance, ten by Hierotheos Vlachos, Metnepsis (sobriety of the soul), ropolitan of Nafpaktos. This text
and the holy sacraments.
is available in English as well,
An equally disturbing com- translated by Esther Williams.
ment came during a recent serAs its description approprivice for the Saturday of Souls, ately explains, this books conwhich is held four times a year tains the important message
to commemorate the faithful that the Church can heal an ailwho have fallen asleep. During ing personality. The term "Orthis particular service in a once thodox Psychotherapy" does not
refer to specific cases of people
suffering from psychological
problems or neuroses, but
rather, all people. According to
Orthodox tradition, after the fall
of Adam, man became ill; his
"nous" was darkened and lost
communion with God. Death
entered into the person's being
and caused many anthropological, social, and even ecological
problems. In the tragedy of his
fall, man maintained the image
of God within him but completely lost His likeness, since
his communion with God was
disrupted. However, the incarnation of Christ and the work
of the Church aim at enabling
the person to attain this likeness; in other words, to reestablish communion with God. This
passageway from a fallen state
to theosis or deification is called
the healing of the person, because it is connected with his
return from a state of being contrary to nature, to that of a state
according to nature and above
nature. By adhering to the Orthodox therapeutic treatment,
as prescribed by the Holy Fathers of Church, man can successfully cope with his thoughts
(logismoi) and thus resolve his
problems completely and comprehensively.
Mired as we are in a secular
world, Church leaders must do
all they can to promote the Orthodox worldview.
Toward this end, scandals or
even the problems arising from
everyday coexistence present an
opportunity to convey the message that psychological problems are mainly problems of
thoughts, a darkened mind, and
an impure heart. Spokespersons
must allow the symbolism of the
Church to speak the language
of the heart, and rely less on a
rhetoric that seeks to rationalize
everything, without first reconnecting one’s intelligence with
their heart.
Follow
me
@CTripoulas
on
Twitter
LETTER FROM ATHENS
Hellenikon Dead Zone Shows Signs of Life, If Wrong Use
Once upon a time, the Hellenikon International Airport on
Athens’ southern coast, with a
sea view, was the landing place
for visitors: tourists, celebrities,
the rich and famous, business
executives, travelers, foreigners,
Greeks, some coming to visit,
some coming to live, some returning from elsewhere, as many
as 13.5 million a year toward
the end.
When it closed in 2001 after
a new airport was built north of
the city, in a vast, almost empty
area apart from some settlements and a new highway, Hellenikon was allowed to go to
seed, an abandoned relic, just as
were the 2004 Olympic venues.
A sign once proudly proclaiming Olympic as the country’s national carrier has rusted
away on a decaying building.
Airplanes are rotting away on a
tarmac of broken concrete punctuated with weeds and overgrowth.
Waiting areas are eerily
empty, like a scary scene from a
Twilight Zone episode where
you can almost imagine someone with their eyes bugged out
fearing a ghost will come rambling past. Venetian blinds dangle at awkward angles before
grimy or broken windows.
Debris and the detritus of
what was once a bustling airport
lie in forgotten buildings and
even on the runways. Old boarding passes and litter lie on floors.
Broken plastic chairs are aligned
in cracked rows. An escalator is
filled with loose-leaf binders.
dozens of inThe only place
vestors.
there’s signs of life
This time it was
is in the front, along
objections from a
a major road, where
18 Members of
several thousand
Parliament from
refugees and mithe ruling Looney
grants have been livLeft SYRIZA Party
ing for almost a
whose
leader,
y e a r - a n d - a - h a l f,
Prime
Minister
making the Dead
Alexis
“Che”
Zone their home,
Tsipras, vowed to
hoping against hope
stop it as part of
for asylum or even
by ANDY
his promise to halt
to move on to more
DABILIS
privatizations beprosperous Eurofore he caved in to
pean Union counSpecial to
The National Herald
demands from the
tries which have
country’s internaclosed their doors to
tional lenders putting up 326 bilthem.
At 1,530 acres, the site is lion euros ($344.45 billion) in
three times the size of Monaco three life-saving bailouts.
The phony dissidents, who
and was destined to become Europe’s biggest urban park in a now want to stop the plan becity that needs more green space cause they said the Dead Zone
to put some color and oxygen is an archaeological treasure –
into a vast white cement jungle if you count abandoned airliners
and weeds – raised the silly arthat is not a charming place.
But after years of frittered- gument not to save a hallowed
away time to devise a develop- site but their own faces after goment, even that too was aban- ing along with its plan to be dedoned in favor of yet more veloped but wanting to tell votconcrete buildings and commer- ers they didn’t. That’s the
cial development with plans to SYRIZA way.
The objectors, including forput hotels and office buildings –
and some trees, of course – ad- mer SYRIZA MP Nadia Valavani
asked “very significant buildings
jacent to the sea.
The plan that seemed set to in the area of the former Elliniko
finally be realized, a 7-billion airport” be listed for protection
euro ($7.4 billion) multi-use de- as historic monuments, the
velopment by a consortium led newspaper Kathimerini reby Greece’s Lamba Develop- ported. Really? Which ones?
ment, with partners from China Why didn’t they object before?
“This project is a gameand Arab funding, ran full
square into the old Greek road- changer,” Odisseas Athanassiou,
block that has driven away Lamda’s Chief Executive, told
Reuters. “It is going to change
the psychology of foreign capital
toward investment in Greece.”
He didn’t mention the benefits it would bring Lambda, already under a cloud for unlawfully building the Athens Mall
and getting away with it despite
a ruling from the country’s highest court it was done against the
law.
When it comes to money in
Greece, nothing is against the
law so the Lambda Hellenikon
development will eventually
proceed, especially after the
country’s privatization agency
said it would, and that’s the tune
to which Tsipras is now dancing
so he’ll squash his dissenters like
the bugs they are.
The project would include
the creation as well of some kind
of park, sports and recreation facilities and other commercial areas and is only a few miles from
the country’s cultural jewel, the
new Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center along the
same strip of road.
Tying the two together would
create a combined link of culture
and development in otherwise
underused areas, but obstacles
remain for Hellenikon, including
an environmental study and relocating the greater Athens’ only
casino.
There’s one use that, like the
old airport, has been forgotten,
abandoned and cast aside and
is only real one: Europe’s biggest
urban park.
[email protected]
Enhancing the Role of the Ecumenical Patriarch
By Dennis Menos
The fact that the Orthodox
Church is fragmented and operates without centralized control
is well known. The Holy and
Great Pan-Orthodox Council
held last year in Crete provided
ample proof.
The Orthodox Church is a
consortium of 14 Autocephalous
(self- governing) Churches. Each
operates independently of the
others, but remains in full communion with them on matters
of faith, sacraments, and canonical discipline. Governance in
each case is by a Primate, selected by the Church’s Synod of
Bishops. There is no “head” as
such of the Orthodox Church to
whom he and the other Primates
of the Autocephalous Churches
must report.
Because of the advantages autocephaly offered, it became the
preferred form of church administration in the Orthodox East
from the earliest of times. Autocephaly allowed persons of similar ethnic background to orga-
nize their churches, retain their
own language in religious services, and be administered locally, without the requirement
for outside oversight or direction.
It all made sense back then,
but it no longer does.
Autocephaly is not responsive
to many of today’s challenges.
For one, there is no provision in
its structure for a “head” of the
Orthodox East to coordinate and
promulgate the policies and activities of all Autocephalous
Churches. The Ecumenical Patriarch currently has no such authority; he is merely the “first
among equals” of the Primates
of the Autocephalous Churches.
In the absence of a “head” of the
Church, issues of common concern need to be debated and
agreed upon by all 14 Primates
before they can be implemented
-- admittedly an extremely demanding task.
The Orthodox Church has
also a huge diaspora problem today – a byproduct of autocephaly – as evidenced by the
millions of Orthodox now resid-
ing and practicing their Orthodox faith outside the borders of
their parent Autocephalous
Church, but to which they still
belong administratively. Enormous waste in Orthodox infrastructure and clergy resources,
worldwide, are the result. Adversely affected also by the absence of an Orthodox Church
“head” are the ongoing reconciliation dialogues with Rome
and other Christian Churches.
Despite the best intentions on
both sides, in the absence of
someone who can speak with
authority for the entire East, results have been meager.
Even among critics of autocephaly, there is no desire currently to replace the present system with a different form of
church structure. But the time
has come, to alleviate certain
major problems inherent in autocephaly that constrain Orthodoxy from fulfilling its worldwide mission.
These problems cannot be
confronted, however, until the
role of the Ecumenical Patriarch
has been dramatically enhanced.
The Ecumenical Patriarch needs
to be elevated to the rank of
“head” of the Orthodox East,
with authority to act and speak
for the entire Church. He cannot
continue being merely one of the
Primates in the Orthodox East.
Every human activity involving
large numbers of people,
whether a commercial activity,
social organization, or political
institution, has a “head”- someone in charge who provides
overall direction and control. So,
should also the Orthodox
Church. The Ecumenical Patriarch needs to become in fact the
“first” Primate throughout the
entire Orthodox East, rather
than a mere ”first among
equals,” which is his present
role.
To be able to fulfill effectively
his duties as the “head” of the
Orthodox Church, the Ecumenical Patriarch will need to be
freed of all responsibility for
serving also as the Primate of
the Church of Constantinople.
This responsibility, for adminis-
tering the Church’s holdings in
Turkey, Greece, Western Europe,
the United States, and Australia,
should be assumed by a senior
Hierarch of the Patriarchate, perhaps its Grand Chancellor. Freed
of this burden, the Ecumenical
Patriarch would then be able to
focus on activities designed to
reunify Greek Orthodoxy. One
such activity would be the convening annually of a conclave of
the Primates of all 14 Autocephalous Churches. Such a
body does not currently exist,
but needs to be formally activated and serve as the senior
policymaking assembly of the
Orthodox East. Huge benefits
should accrue from such regular
meetings of the Orthodox Primates conducted in reverence
and understanding.
Will the Primates of the Autocephalous Churches concur in
the organizational changes proposed herewith? Only time will
tell. Convincing them of the wisdom of the proposed changes
will require patience and energy,
but they must be persuaded of
their need, if the Orthodox
Church is to move into the 21st
century in unity and purpose.
Orthodox faithful, worldwide,
should participate in this regard
(the Order of Saint Andrew
comes to mind for the United
States) by approaching doubting
Hierarchs, in love and humility,
with the rationale for an Orthodox “head” and the need for a
conclave of senior Primates to
address and resolve major PanOrthodox issues.
Enhancing the role of the Ecumenical Patriarch while also
engaging the Primates of all Autocephalous Churches to resolve
the major issues confronting Orthodoxy today will not come
easy. Both actions will probably
require a sustained effort of several years for acceptance. But,
with the help of the Holy Spirit,
both should come to pass to the
benefit of Christ’s Church on
earth.
Dennis Menos is the author of
several books and a writer on
Orthodox and Hellenic issues.
12
THE NATIONAL HERALD, MARCH 11-17, 2017