A year after its launch with the blessing of His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, the “living” museum Our People, Their Stories celebrated its first anniversary with a special event at the Australian National Maritime Museum in Sydney on Saturday, 4 October.
The project was officially presented in Sydney before an audience that included His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia, Greece’s Minister of Culture Lina Mendoni, and distinguished members of the clergy, diplomatic corps and Greek community.
Before the ceremony, Archbishop Makarios and Minister Mendoni were guided through the National Monument to Migration (Welcome Wall) and the museum’s naval exhibits, symbolising the journey and endurance of Greek migrants in Australia.
Upon entering the event hall, Minister Mendoni was greeted by young members of the Hellenic Lyceum of Sydney, who presented her with flowers, including a young man dressed in traditional attire from her home island of Chios.
The evening opened with an audiovisual tribute featuring stories from the museum’s growing archive, followed by speeches from Archbishop Makarios, Minister Mendoni and Greece’s Ambassador to Australia Stavros Venizelos.
Archbishop Makarios described the project as a “living bridge between generations”, honouring the Greek pioneers who built the foundations of Hellenism in Australia. He praised the museum’s creator and director Markellos Petropoulos for his “zeal and dedication”, and thanked the Greek Ministry of Culture for placing the initiative under its auspices and granting €120,000 in support.
“From the outset, she [Minister Mendoni] embraced our ambitious vision and offered us what we, the Greeks of the Diaspora, most need—the moral assurance that the government of our beloved homeland stands close to us, listens to us, cares for us, and honours our history,” the Archbishop said.
Turning to the younger generation, His Eminence urged them to cherish their roots: “Take care to learn the stories of our people—your parents, your grandmothers, and your grandfathers—and be inspired by their example… Whoever disregards their history is like a tree that severs its own roots.”
Minister Mendoni commended the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia for safeguarding diaspora memory.
“The Greek Ministry of Culture, recognising the value of cultural memory as a foundation of our national identity, warmly embraced this endeavour by placing it under its auspices… Our People, Their Stories is a model of such an effort, and we are convinced that it will become a reference point for Greek cultural presence in Australia and internationally,” Minister Mendoni said.
Guests later toured an adjacent exhibition featuring artefacts from the migration era, bringing to life the experiences of those who shaped the Greek Australian story.
The evening was masterfully hosted by Professor Vrasidas Karalis of the University of Sydney, Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Among those attending were regional bishops, Greek and Cypriot diplomats, Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and representatives from Australia’s Greek community and academia.
