When the committee for St Anthony’s Greek Orthodox Church in Prospect, South Australia put the word out on social media for volunteers to sign up for the inaugural Greek festival, more than 100 people signed up.
On Saturday, February 15, the team effort of different generations culminated in a well-attended festival on church grounds.
The paniyiri had been held at a nearby park until 1999, but in April last year the committee began discussing the ‘rebirthing’ of the festival.
President of St Anthony’s, Con Dalas, said ‘persistent requests’ from their local community was a driving force to deliver a festival for the community.
“Over 25 years ago, we hosted an annual Paniyiri Festival at St Helen’s Park -a beloved tradition in our community,” Mr Dalas said.
“Unfortunately, the festival faced various challenges, including changes in committees, funding issues, restrictions on park usage, and insurance premiums leading to its discontinuation.”
Fast forward to Saturday and the festival was back with a bang. Hot food, sweets, drinks and loukoumades were available at stalls. There was also an area for face painting and games.
Entertainment during the night included Greek dancing performances by the St Anthony Greek Language School, St George College School, Cretan Dance Group, St Anthony Youth Dance Group, and the Messinian Dance Group, as well as music by DJ Stelio and the ‘Enosis’ band.
Mr Dalas welcomed the crowd, thanking the volunteers, the VIPs, and sponsors for their involvement in making the event a success.
“The main goal is to celebrate our Greek culture and heritage, to reconnect our older members… who previously organised this event (over 25 odd years ago), with our younger members who have yet to experience the rich traditions of a true Greek Festival,” he said.
He also thanked supporters of the Festival including the state government for contributing $10,000, Multicultural SA ($5,000), Federal Government ($5,000) and the Prospect Council ($3,000).
“This funding has made it possible for us to bring this festival to life, allowing us to celebrate our culture, our community, and our traditions,” he said.
Special guests on the day included Greek Consul General in Adelaide, Alexandra Theodoropoulou; His Grace Bishop Silouan of Adelaide; Federal Member for Adelaide, Steve Georganas MP; State Member for Adelaide, Lucy Hood MP; State Member for Enfield, Andrea Michaels MP; City of Prospect Mayor Matt Larwood; parish priest Father Nicholas, and Archons of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia, Chris Diamantis, John Kiosoglous and Panagiotis Demourtzidis.
In her speech, Ms Hood spoke highly of all involved in their dedication to bring the inaugural festival event to her local community.
“My heartfelt thanks to the organisers of today’s festival for bringing Prospect and the wider community together for such a beautiful celebration of Greek culture, cuisine, music, dance and community spirit,” she said.
“I also want to express my gratitude for St Anthony’s Church, which brings together community not just for this special day, but every day.”
*All photos copyright The Greek Herald / Martina Simos
