The Kytherian Youth Association (KYA) held its inaugural Basketball for Mental Health event on Sunday, August 21 at the Centennial Parklands Sport Centre in Sydney.
The event saw young Kytherians go head-to-head in a number of basketball games to raise much-needed funds for Headspace – a national foundation which provides early intervention mental health services to youth aged 12 to 25 years old.
On the day, everyone mingled and enjoyed a barbeque and bake sale. Nine teams competed and in the end, the winning team was the undefeated ‘Cass Cousins.’
KYA President, Michael Preneas, told The Greek Herald the event was a huge success.
“I’d like to thank the referees that gave up their time, as well as the cooks and everyone else that volunteered to help out on the day,” Mr Preneas said.
“Thank you to everyone who came and played in the competition, it was great to have a sporty event where everyone was running around and having fun and I hope we can do more events like this in the future.
“I’m so glad to be working with the KYA committee of 2022 and I’m thankful for their countless hours of preparation and hard work.”
In a Sydney Morning Heraldarticle today, Jay Langadinos has detailed her gender transition experience.
Langadinos was 19 years old when she first visited psychiatrist Dr Patrick Toohey, in May 2010. At the time, Dr Toohey diagnosed her with gender dysphoria and found her eligible to take masculinising hormones.
In 2012, Dr Toohey approved Langadinos’ request to undergo double mastectomy and seven months later a hysterectomy.
Now, at 31 years of age, Langadinos no longer identifies as a male and is suing Dr Toohey for professional negligence. She is alleging that he “knew or ought to have known” she required further psychiatric and specialist evaluation prior to approving the procedures.
Langadinos told The Sydney Morning Herald: “Knowing that I can’t have children is absolutely devastating.”
Prior to a busy Monday night NUGAS meeting in preparation for their annual ball, the young leaders and volunteers were met by the Board and staff of the Greek Community of Melbourne (GCM).
The meeting, hosted at the community library on level 12 of The Greek Centre, offered an opportunity to share visions, explore collaboration and develop pathways for continued involvement in the community.
The ongoing aim of this relationship is to further connect the organisations and facilitate deeper and more personalised involvement in community positions, provide mentorship for emerging leaders and share resources for NUGAS to fulfil its unique role in the community.
The GCM were delighted to hear NUGAS’ insights on how youth and the broader Greek community can support each other, with GCM President Bill Papastergiadis expressing the importance of “bridging the gap between the youth and the Greek community’s various organisations.”
The diverse experiences and observations of NUGAS committee members, particularly of co-presidents Billy Battista and James Panas, were also a prominent part of the conversation. Billy and James updated the GCM of the scale and reach of their events, eagerly anticipating a sell-out 800-person NUGAS-ball this September.
With the conversation shifting to support, Spiridoula Demetriou advised that the GCM was excited to re-enforce a collaborative relationship with NUGAS.
Spiridoula highlighted that through this relationship students would be provided a platform to further engage with the broader Greek community post the conclusion of their university courses.
With this, Michael Karamitos emphasised that listening to the vision of the students was vital to developing the relationship. While Vicki Kyritsis also noted that the GCM would welcome NUGAS input on various subcommittees.
Mr Papastergiadis further expressed that the GCM would work on resourcing and developing the NUGAS vision. In particular, the GCM offices would be available as they have been without charge for all their meetings and events, as well as helping with formatting and finalising their newsletters.
The night concluded with the GCM committing to helping NUGAS with the coordination of events, marketing efforts, administration, as well as supporting them to launch new and various endeavours.
Ahead of next month’s jobs and skills summit, the Federal Government says there is a looming shortage of workers across a range of key sectors, with reduced migration, caused by COVID-related border closures, being an exacerbating factor.
According to data published last week by the Treasury, almost a third of Australian businesses reported difficulty finding suitable staff in June, most citing a lack of experience or skills as a major factor.
The largest demand over the next five years is predicted to be for construction managers, early childhood teachers, registered nurses, ICT business and systems analysts and electricians. Civil engineers, chefs, childcare workers, aged and disabled carers are also expected to be in high demand.
Speaking withThe Age, Immigration Minister Andrew Giles said that Australia’s migration program requires an overhaul to make the nation attractive to skilled migrants so as to address the deficit.
I spoke with @theage about the vital nation-building role of our migration program, how we need to rebuild this capacity and its connection to wider jobs and skills reforms – and on taking a more decent and compassionate approach to refugees.https://t.co/JXmU6QzLCH
The current migration system has become difficult to administer and difficult for potential migrants to navigate, due to piecemeal changes that have accumulated over time.
Presently, there are over 70 unique visa programs in Australia, each with its own criteria and subcategories that are timely to process with only 50% of short-term Temporary Skill Shortage visas, being processed within three months.
Giles said these factors place Australia on the back foot when it comes to the “global race for talent”.
With the average migrant making a lifetime contribution to GDP of $2.3 million, and a skilled migrant contributing $4.6million, it is expected that a responsive and targeted migration system will not only help boost Australia’s workforce but contribute to the nation’s economic growth.
Mitsotakis spoke yesterday during an online summit celebrating Ukraine’s Independence Day, noting today marks “six months since Russia’s unprovoked invasion and war of aggression against Ukraine.”
The Greek Prime Minister went on to describe Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as part of a “revisionist plan to redraw Europe’s borders,” which he likened to Turkey’s 1974 invasion of Cyprus.
“We had, in the past, a similar experience with the Turkish invasion and occupation of a large part of Cyprus, in 1974,” he said.
“This wound is still open, after almost 50 years. We know the pain and cost this brings to a country.”
Tonight we are illuminating our headquarters – the Berlaymont – in blue and yellow
🔵to celebrate Ukraine’s Independence Day 🟡to show our unwavering support & solidarity
Mitsotakis was firm in that “revisionism and lack of respect for the basic principles of International Law must be stopped from the start. If this is not done, attackers are encouraged to further their agenda.”
“It is a matter of principle for Greece not to accept the border change that Russia is trying to impose on Ukraine. Greece will be there, when this war ends, to support the reconstruction of Ukraine and help Kyiv on its European path.”
Following a rise in illegal immigration from its eastern neighbour, Greece has committed to extend a fence along its Evros land border with Turkey and expand surveillance efforts.
The decision was made during a regular meeting of the Governmental Council for National Security (KYSEA), chaired by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, on Tuesday.
Following the meeting, a government statement said Mitsotakis and Greece’s top immigration, security and military officials, discussed “the problem of increased pressure for illegal entry, both along the land border and along the sea border” in the eastern Aegean Sea.
“It was decided to gradually expand the fence along the whole length of the Evros,” with an initial focus on potential trouble spots, the statement said.
“It was also decided to upgrade and strengthen surveillance systems,” which at present will see an increase in patrols along the frontier.
Migration and Asylum Minister Notis Mitarakis, who had already announced the extension of the fence by around 80 km on Friday during an interview with SKAI radio, participated in the meeting at the invitation of the Prime Minister.
The Evros fence being extended in 2021.
In 2020, Turkey said it was opening its western borders to migrants wanting to enter Europe. As a response, Greece expanded the existing fence in the Evros region and increased frontier security to prevent thousands of people from breaking through.
The national security decision on Tuesday comes after Greek authorities have faced severe criticism this month over a group of 38 refugees who were stranded on an islet in the Evros River. It was alleged the group had been pushed back and forth for days by both Greek and Turkish security personnel.
Greek officials deny the allegations, maintaining the refugees were on Turkish territory and that Greek police moved swiftly to locate and extract the refugees.
The winners of the 2022 Restaurant & Catering Awards for Excellence in South Australia were unveiled during a special award ceremony at Adelaide Oval on Monday, August 22.
The Awards formally recognise hospitality operators across a broad range of categories who consistently provide exceptional service and demonstrate culinary excellence in their respective fields.
Among this year’s winners are at least two Greek restaurants and one Greek Australian chef.
Estia Restaurant at Henley Beach won in the ‘Best Greek Restaurant’ category over finalists Agapi Greek Cuisine at Hyde Park and Eleni’s at Renmark.
Team at Estia Restaurant. Photo: Glam Adelaide and Milco Design.
In the ‘Best Patisserie / Bakery / Dessert Bar’ award category, Kalymnos Pastries at Torrensville also won. They beat three finalists: CJ’s Bakery at Christies Beach, The Little Red Grape at Sevenhill Clare Valley, and The Village Baker at Glenside.
Kalymnos Pastries was also inducted into the Restaurant & Catering Industry’s Hall of Fame.
Kalymnos Pastries team. Photo: Glam Adelaide and Milco Design.
On the night, the owner of Kalymnos Pastries, George Diakomichalis, gave a short speech and said it was an “absolute honour” to be recognised for the second year in a row. He also thanked his team for their support.
“This is massive news and we couldn’t wait to share it with you!” a post on the patisserie’s Facebook page read.
Another Greek winner at the awards ceremony was Jim Dimitropoulos, who was named ‘Restaurateur of the Year’ in SA. Dimitropoulos is the owner of Eros Kafe on Adelaide’s Rundle Street.
In a Facebook story, Dimitropoulos wrote to his customers: “Thank you for your support over the years.”
Dimitropoulos’ Facebook story post.
While the 2022 Restaurant & Catering Awards for Excellence have now been finalised in Victoria, Queensland and South Australia, the award ceremonies for New South Wales (September 19), the Northern Territory (August 29) and the Australian Capital Territory (September 12) are still to come.
In NSW, JAAKS Restaurant & Bar at Kyle Bay, Koutouki at Leichardt and The Apollo at Elizabeth Bay have all been named finalists in the ‘Best Greek Restaurant’ category, whilst Bill Drakopoulos’ The Fenwick at Balmain East is up for ‘Best Contemporary Australian Restaurant – Informal’ and Cafe Leura at Leura is in the running to win ‘Best Cafe Dining.’
To find out more about these finalists and the awards please visit this website: https://bit.ly/3QyFEvX.
*Please note: If you are a Greek-owned business or restaurant who won or is a finalist in the Awards, please send us an email to info@foreignlanguage.com.au.
This year’s ‘Dekapentavgousto’ celebrations by the Pontians of Australia took place over the weekend with splendour and a wonderful festive atmosphere.
A large number of participants joined in the festivities which ran over three days and were organised by the member associations of the Australian Federation of Pontian Associations in honour of the ‘Magalochari’, Soumela Panagia.
The festivities began on Friday, August 19 at the Central Pontian Association of Melbourne and Victoria “Pontiaki Estia” with an event named ‘Fagopoti,’ meaning ‘food and drink.’ The large number of young people who attended was impressive as they danced to traditional Pontian music well into the night.
The musicians were mainly Australian-born, among them George Sevastopoulos, Stefanos Levogiannis and Konstantine Kostidis on the Pontian lyra, Despina Levogiannis on the angeion, Michalis Vassiliou on the flute, Dimitris Tsombanopoulos and Yiannis Pilalidis on the daouli, as well as Κostas Pataridis who accompanied the group in song.
The highlight of the night was the performance by the small and intermediate dance groups of the association who presented traditional dances of Pontos.
On Saturday, August 21 attendees of the event held by the Pontian Association “Panagia Soumela,” were treated to a memorable night of dancing and entertainment with the unique voice and talent of Christos Xanthopoulos who sang and played the lyra. He was accompanied by Yiannis Gioskos, Christos Katsios and Kostas Xanthopoulos on the clarinet. Christos Xanthopoulos will be in Australia to take part in upcoming events organised by the association.
Event held by the Pontian Association “Panagia Soumela.”
Also on Saturday, the Pontian Brotherhood of ‘St George,’ Western Australia held their Ball with great success.
At the sell-out event, Perth’s Greek community was treated to a night of traditional dancing and live music by Pontian artists from Melbourne who performed for free in aid of the club.
The highlight of the evening was the performance of the association’s three children’s dance groups who appeared for the first time in new traditional costumes and sang in the Pontian dialect, “Soumela len tin Panagia,” to enthusiastic applause.
The festivities ended on Sunday, August 21, with the all-day festival ‘paniyiri’ at “Pontiaki Estia.” After the church service at the Greek Orthodox Parish of “Panagia Soumela” in East Keilor, where a copy of the original icon of Panagia Soumela is housed, the celebrations continued at the club’s premises with a rich music and dance program and a variety of delicious food.
After two years of restrictions on large gatherings, more than 70 dancers from six dance groups of Melbourne took the opportunity to meet and make new acquaintances while presenting traditional dances from various regions of Greece.
Thirteen musicians entertained the crowed and a live broadcast was transmitted on radio 3XY by the announces of the Pontian program “O Xeniteas,” Litsa Athanasiadis and Panos Stamatopoulos.
After three days filled with tradition, fun and unforgettable memories, the celebrations for this year’s Dormition of the Theotokos, Panagia Soumela, were concluded.
The Presidents and Committee Members of the Pontian Associations and the Federation (AFPA) send their warmest wishes to the members of our community and thank them for their ongoing support.
A huge natural gas deposit has been discovered by drilling partners, Eni of Italy and France’s Total, about 160 km off Cyprus’ southern coastline.
According to a statement by the Cypriot energy ministry, the new discovery was made at the Cronos-1 well inside Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and is estimated to contain around 2.5 trillion cubic feet of hydrocarbon.
This is the second deposit that the Eni-Total consortium has discovered there.
News of the discovery has been welcomed by the US State Department, which said Cyprus has the right to develop resources within its EEZ.
As reported by AMNA a US State Department spokesperson said that developing natural resources in the East Mediterranean should promote cooperation and contribute to energy security and economic prosperity of the entire area.
US Department of State
“The United States remains united with its allies and partners in their commitment to promoting European energy security, reducing the region’s dependence on Russian energy, and continuing to pressure the Kremlin,” the spokesperson said.
“The United States recognises the right of the Cyprus Republic to develop the resources lying within its EEZ.
“Oil and natural resources and all its resources, in general, should be fairly shared between the Greek and Turkish communities.”
The ACT magistrates court has granted lawyers for tennis star, Nick Kyrgios, a six-week adjournment to address a charge of alleged assault,ABC News has reported.
Kyrgios’ lawyer, Michael Kukulies-Smith, asked the case’s magistrate, Louise Taylor, today to adjourn the case to November 25 – a time to accommodate Kyrgios, who was not often in Canberra.
Mr Kukulies-Smith also said he would make an application on that date.
“It’s an application… which is one which is capable of resolving the matter,” the lawyer said without going into much detail.
But Magistrate Taylor said she was reluctant to grant the date, and that she was not certain of why there was the secrecy.
Kyrgios had been summonsed to face a charge of assaulting his former girlfriend (pictured, left).
She also told the court in the ordinary course of events she would be asking Mr Kukulies-Smith to indicate pleas of guilty or not guilty for his client.
Magistrate Taylor granted a six-week adjournment, with the case set to be back on October 4.
