The pop-up vaccination clinic at the gymnasium of All Saints Grammar in Belmore is entering its third and final week before it returns in October and many from the Greek and wider community have hailed it a great success.
Running every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday since August 18, registered nurses, volunteers and expert translators have been working hard to safely administer at least 500 Pfizer vaccinations a day to people aged 16 to 59 from 12 Local Government Areas (LGA) of concern across Greater Sydney.
This includes Bayside, Blacktown, Burwood, Campbelltown, Canterbury-Bankstown, Cumberland, Fairfield, Georges River, Liverpool, Parramatta, Strathfield, and some suburbs of Penrith.
Exclusive look inside the clinic. Photo: Andriana Simos.
By the end of the three week clinic, which is this Friday, September 3, a total of 4,500 Pfizer vaccines would have been administered, with people awaiting their second doses when the clinic reopens on October 13.
“It’s been very successful. It has allowed people to come out and make their own choices. A lot of people have said they need this to get back to work,” Chris, who is one of the leaders of the church community helping set up the clinic run by NSW Health, tells The Greek Herald.
Volunteers and translators work together at the hub. Photo: Andriana Simos.
“We had many parishioners come, many elderly and not only from Belmore. We’ve had people from across the 12 LGAs.
“We really just want to say thank you to the Greek Welfare Centre for volunteering and to the nursing and administration staff for giving their time. They’ve come from all over Sydney to be a part of this.”
The Greek Herald first visited the clinic when it opened and saw hundreds lining up outside the gymnasium waiting for their vaccination.
People queuing up outside. Photo: Andriana Simos.
47-year-old, Tina Daniels, was one of the people vaccinated on the day and told The Greek Herald her experience at the pop-up clinic was ‘unreal’ as she’s ‘looking forward to some freedom.’
“It was very good. Everyone is just trying to do their best to keep everyone safe and the nurses were beautiful,” Ms Daniels said as she sat in the clinic’s observation area after receiving her vaccine.
“I think it’s really good to have pop-up hubs like this. I wish there was more of them. This is a great organisation and it’s really lovely of them to open their doors up to us and allow us in to be vaccinated.”
Prior to vaccination for Ms Szatow. Photo: Andriana Simos.
Tina Daniels. Photo: Andriana Simos.
Renee Moreton, who is the General Manager of Population Health for Sydney Local Health District. Photo: Andriana Simos.
Renee Moreton, who is the General Manager of Population Health for Sydney Local Health District, agreed and encouraged more people to come down and get their first dose of Pfizer.
“It’s great to be able to work with our community partners. I think the community trust the organisations that are part of the community and that helps with people that might be a bit vaccine hesitant,” Ms Moreton said.
To book an appointment at All Saints Grammar gym please visit: bit.ly/mycovaxvc16.
The Australian Government today announced the formation of the Advisory Panel on Australia’s Resettlement of Afghan Nationals, to be co-chaired by humanitarian settlement expert Paris Aristotle AO and Commonwealth Coordinator-General Migrant Services Alison Larkins.
Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migrant Services and Multicultural Affairs, Alex Hawke MP, said the advisory panel will play a critical role in supporting Afghan evacuees as they settle into Australian life.
“The Advisory Panel is a group of highly regarded Australian-Afghan community leaders and refugee and settlement experts, chosen for their commitment and expertise in refugee and integration issues,” Minister Hawke said.
“Australia has a proud history of helping those most in need and we are fortunate to have such a wealth of knowledge from across Australia to be working with us to ensure our world class settlement program is delivering to them the comprehensive support they need to get established and settled in Australia as fast as possible.”
Commonwealth Coordinator-General Migrant Services, Alison Larkins, will co-chair the panel.
“This is an incredibly distressing and challenging time for the evacuees and the Australian-Afghan community,” he said.
“Our first priority is the mental and physical wellbeing of the evacuees. That’s why the Australian Government is working with our service providers and the States and Territories to deliver all of the initial settlement and practical support needs that the evacuees have, both in quarantine and the weeks and months ahead,” he said.
“In consultation with the Advisory Panel, the Government is also looking at what further specialised support might be needed to enhance the settlement process and make sure the evacuees start their lives in Australia on the strongest possible footing,” he said.
“Many arrivals from Afghanistan, including women and children have endured experiences of torture and trauma and we will be ensuring our support programs have the capacity to respond and aid their recovery from these experiences,” he said.
Alex Hawke MP made the announcement today.
“Alongside our Humanitarian Settlement Program providers, I also want to acknowledge the terrific support being provided by cultural and local community organisations and other key networks including legal service providers and torture and trauma support services. In consultation with the Advisory Panel, I will be considering how best to bolster some of these supports,” he said.
“We will also be working closely with communities across Australia that will become home to the new entrants. I am very pleased to see an outpouring of support across the Australian community for the evacuees and the humanitarian entrants to follow,” Minister Hawke said.
The Advisory Panel includes:
Mr Paris Aristotle AO (Chair of the Refugee and Migrant Services Advisory Council and CEO of the Victorian Foundation for Survivors of Torture)
Ms Alison Larkins (Commonwealth Coordinator-General Migrant Services).
Ms Gula Bezhan (Founder and President of the Afghan Women’s Organisation Victoria)
Ms Carmel Guerra OAM (Chair of the Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network and CEO of the Centre for Multicultural Youth Victoria)
Ms Sandra Elhelw Wright (CEO of Settlement Council Australia)
Mr Paul Power (CEO of Refugee Council Australia)
Mr Hussain Razaiat (President of the Afghan United Association of SA)
Mr Nazer Nazir (Co-Founder and President of the Afghan Australian Initiative)
Mr Ali Reza Yunespour (Board of Directors, Community Refugee Sponsorship Australia )
Ms Shukufa Tahiri (Vice chair of National Refugee Led Advisory and Advocacy Group)
Ms Madina Mohmood (Indooroopilly Uniting Church Refugee and Asylum Seeker Hub)
Professor Christine Phillips AM (Australian National University).
The Advisory Panel was formed with the purpose of:
planning to support the Government’s commitment to provide an initial 3,000 humanitarian places in the offshore Humanitarian Program to Afghan nationals
ensuring appropriate settlement and integration supports for Afghan new arrivals and the communities into which they will settle
harnessing the high level of community commitment and interest in welcoming newcomers and supporting the successful settlement and integration of this cohort.
The Advisory Panel will operate for an initial 12 months, with the possibility of extension should ongoing advice be required.
Ange Postecoglou has lost the biggest game of his Celtic coaching stint so far, with the Greek Australian mastermind’s side falling to a 1-0 defeat to fierce Glasgow rivals Rangers.
Scottish champions, Rangers, stretched their unbeaten Old Firm run to seven games after a second-half goal by Swedish defender, Filip Helander.
The result left Rangers, who had won five of their previous six meetings against Celtic, third in the Scottish Premiership on nine points from four games after Helander headed home a Borna Barisic corner at the far post in the 67th minute.
Celtic stayed sixth on six points after suffering their second league defeat of the season, having been beaten by Hearts 2-1 in their opening game.
Postecoglou, who has quickly become a fan favourite at Celtic Park after an impressive start to the season, was left to rue early missed chances from his team
The Australian manager was left aghast when Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard missed a close-range sitter in the 25th minute, somehow scuffing his shot wide with the goal gaping.
Postecogou’s first Old Firm derby as Celtic manager ended in defeat. Photo: ABC News / Bein Sports.
“We had the opportunity to grab hold of the game and we didn’t take it. So it’s still disappointing and something we need to make sure that, especially in these big games, when the moment arrives we take it,” Postecoglou said after the match.
The derby defeat is a blow for Celtic, and Postecoglou said he was looking forward to the transfer window closing on Wednesday morning (AEST).
“We’re keen to get to the end of the window so we can settle the squad down and do some work with the players,” he said.
“On the other side of the window we’ll know what squad we have and what players are in the picture for us moving forward and we can build.”
Proud Greek Australian, Kon Vatskalis, has claimed victory in the Darwin Lord Mayoral race with a convincing lead on first preference votes.
While only 56 per cent of votes are counted so far roughly, Mr Vatskalis leads by more than 10,000 first preferences.
Amye Un is sitting in second place but on just 3,405 votes compared to Mr Vatskalis on 15,850 votes.
“Thank you to the residents of Darwin who gave me their trust and re-elected me for another four years to continue the work we’ve done the last four years,” Mr Vatskalis tells The Greek Herald.
The Darwin Mayor says he will now shift his focus to planning for the years ahead, with “more trees, more public works and more construction of public facilities” on his agenda.
His Council has already implemented a number of successful initiatives for Darwin residents in the form of relief vouchers for businesses, stable council rates and even a ‘Green Army.’
“Our council, the last four years, was the only council which not only had to deal with a cyclone but also the pandemic and the challenges were huge. We lost 10,000 trees. We replanted another 5,000 trees and now we will plant another 8,000 during this period,” Mr Vatskalis says.
Kon Vatskalis is thousands of votes ahead of the second-placed Amye Un. Photo: ABC News / Che Chorley.
“We had a ‘Green Army’ of people who didn’t even get the JobKeeper, 100 people, we gave them jobs cleaning our parks, doing jobs we couldn’t do because they were very big.
“We have changed Darwin and transformed it from a city of concrete to a city which is now full of greenery, with trees and flowers.”
Mr Vatsaklis, who says his “culture is purely Greek,” aims to continue these positive changes now that he’s been re-elected.
Tsapatakis was a water polo player when, in 2006, he was paralysed after a motorcycle accident. He has won a silver and three bronze medals at World Championships and two silver and two bronze medals at European Championships since 2013.
“Congratulations to Paralympian Antonis Tsapatakis, who with perseverance and hard work managed to win the bronze in the 100m breaststroke. We are very proud!” Mitsotakis wrote on Twitter.
A Brazilian woman has been sentenced to 31 years in prison for planning the murder of her husband, the former Greek ambassador to Brazil, BBC reports.
In 2016, Kyriakos Amiridis’ charred remains were found in the boot of a burnt-out car in Rio de Janeiro.
His wife Françoise de Souza Oliveira had been having an affair with a military police officer, Sergio Gomes.
Mr Gomes later confessed to killing the ambassador at the behest of his lover, and he has been jailed for 22 years.
Kyriakos Amiridis’ charred remains were found in the boot of a burnt-out car in Rio de Janeiro.
At the end of their three-day trial, a judge described their crime as “bestial.”
Another man, Eduardo Moreira Tedeschi di Melo, who was a relative of Gomes, was acquitted of murder but has already served one year in prison for helping to hide Mr Amiridis’ body.
Mr Amiridis, 59, served as consul in Rio de Janeiro from 2001-04, and returned to Brazil as ambassador the year he was killed.
He married Françoise in 2004 and the couple have a daughter.
Amiridis.
Before his death, Mr Amiridis had travelled from the capital, Brasilia, to the city of Nova Iguacu, north of Rio, to spend the Christmas holidays with his wife and her parents.
Mrs Amiridis first reported him missing, telling police that he’d left their flat without explanation and driven off in a rental car.
The burnt-out car was found the next day under a flyover, with the ambassador’s body inside.
Investigators found blood stains on a sofa in the flat where the couple had been staying, and it’s believed he was killed there before his body was taken away.
Clashes erupted in Athens on Sunday evening between the police and some participants in a protest rally against COVID-19 vaccinations.
Police estimated the participants in the rally in central Syntagma Square at between 7,000 to 8,000 people.
As the last of the speeches denouncing government plans to make vaccinations for health workers and students mandatory were finishing, some youths attacked police standing before the tomb of the Unknown Soldier, next to the Greek Parliament, with bottles, firecrackers and some firebombs.
Police used tear gas, stun grenades and a water cannon to disperse protesters, who shouted obscenities at the police and against Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
In Thessaloniki, Greece’s second largest city to the north, more than 10,000 opponents of vaccinations gathered and dispersed peacefully, police said.
While over 5.7 million people in Greece’s population of 10.7 million have been fully vaccinated, there has been a recent resurgence of cases and hospitalisations, almost entirely fueled by the delta variant and mainly affecting the unvaccinated.
While the number of people on ventilators, at 334, is less than half its peak level, hospitals are feeling the pressure, as former COVID-19 intensive care units have been repurposed for other patients, whose treatment, including surgeries, had been postponed.
Two contentious deadlines loom: September 1st, when all health workers must be vaccinated or be suspended from their jobs, and September 13th, when schools reopen. Schoolchildren, but not teachers, must be vaccinated to attend.
Kyriakos Malathounis has been working with bees since he was five years old. Now 87, he maintains hives in his backyard in Windsor and spends most of his days tending to his garden and of course, his bees.
“I’m like a doctor who keeps notes on his patients and who knows all about them,” Malathounis told Broadsheet.
“I watch my bees and know what they need and when it’s time to build a new hive. Every hive has its own personality.”
Malathounis, who sells his honey under the name Mr Mala, grew up on the island of Imbros, when it still belonged to Greece and had an entirely Greek population. In 1970, it was officially renamed Gokceada and became part of Turkey, eventually leading to a mass exodus of the original residents.
Malathounis is one of seven siblings. His father died at a young age and according to Broadsheet, Malathounis started helping his mother with the bees.
Malathounis’ bees. Photo: Pete Dillon.
She had hives hanging from trees around their property but Malathounis thought there was a better way of housing the bees and set about constructing pine boxes that sat on the ground, had a lid and a series of frames that hung like folders in a filing cabinet.
While the first beehive was almost a disaster, as Malathounis grew older and the years passed, he was working with 350 hives, producing 15 tonnes of honey a year and trading his product across Europe.
Malathounis at home in Windsor. Photo: Pete Dillon.
In the 1960s, the Turkish government – by then in charge of the administration of Imbros – increasingly took measures to marginalise the Greek population, leading to the aforementioned exodus.
According to Broadsheet, Malathounis was in his thirties and decided to move to Australia. When he first arrived, he was unable to make money from selling his honey so decided to work on the production line at General Motors Holden.
Then, having trained as a chef in the Greek army, he cooked at Kaliva in Richmond for 23 years. But he always kept his hives and vegetable garden going.
In winter, he makes the hanging wooden frames for his beehives – the same model he designed on Imbros when he was 12. Only these days, the hives are painted cream and burgundy, like his Edwardian-style house. By summer the frames are filled with honeycomb.
“If you get a good summer, you’ll be bringing honey out every week,” he concludes.
Mr Mala honey is available online or through Whisked at Prahran Market.
Stelios Kazantzidis was one of the most beloved Greek music performers of the modern era. The singer was mostly known for his heavy voice which gave a modern spin to the traditional rembetika, seeing him quickly rise in popularity and spark a whole new wave of musicians.
Some of his most well-known tracks include “Afti I Nihta Menei” (“This Night Remains”), “To Poukamiso”, (“The Shirt”) and “Prosefhi” (“Prayer”). Written below are six of the most important facts that you should know about the artist.
1. He was born on August 29, 1931, and raised in the Athenian suburb of Nea Ionia, where he began working at a local factory. One day, his boss, who believed in young Stelios’ vocal skills, gifted him with a guitar for his birthday and that was all it took for his musical career to take off. One day, a local tavern owner heard Kazantzidis play the organ while singing and recommended he come and play at his restaurant to entertain the customers.
2. His first track recording was entirely unsuccessful. It was a song for Columbia Records dubbed “Gia Mpanio Pas” (“You’re Going For A Swim”). It was his second, a song written by Giannis Papaioannou called “I Valitses” (“The Suitcases”) that helped elevate his career as an artist.
Kazantzidi was best known for his modern spin to traditional rembetika.
3. Kazantzidis was also quite popular with the opposite sex. In the late 50’s, he was engaged to fellow musician Kaiti Gkrey, while further down the line he would tie the knot with Marinella. Neither of those relationships were meant to last however, yet his third marriage with Kyra-Vasso, was the one meant to last.
4. At 1965, while Kazantzidis was at the highest point of his career, he made the decision to pull away from all live performances and acts, something that he stuck with until the end of his life. He continued to release albums however, which remained highly successful.
5. Kazantzidis was a musical icon for the people of Israel, with many of his tracks being translated to Hebrew. As some journalists from the country have pointed out, the reason behind this was the performer’s impeccable ability to combine joy with sorrow in his songs. Kazantzidis also sang in Turkish.
6. He passed away on September 14 2001 due to a brain tumor, with the entire nation mourning his loss.
Ancient Greek storytellers were well known for creating myths and fables which usually included one man’s rise through a series of challenges to eventually become a legend who’s name would be sung throughout the land.
Whether these legends were based on reality or they were simply born from within the imagination of their creators, such as the epic poet Homer, we’ll never know. But some of these mythological beings have survived until today and their conquests have gone on to inspire many artists and creators, while a few of them even had Hollywood blockbuster film adaptations!
Written below are ten of the most commonly known figures from Greek mythology, in descending order. We’ll begin our list with our most famous heroes and save some of the hidden gems for the end.
Hercules slays the Lernean Hydra. Source: HowStuffWorks
Hercules/Herakles: Okay, who hasn’t heard of this name? Be it from the famous TV series starring Kevin Sorbo, or via the Pixar film in which he is brought to life thanks to the talents of Tate Donovan, Hercules is a figure that everyone has seen somewhere at least once in their life.
The son of the king of the twelve gods of ancient Greece Zeus and the mortal woman Alcmene, Hercules was half-man, half-god himself. Due to the irrational hatred of his step-mother Hera, Hercules was forced to go through a number of trials, more commonly referred to as “labours.”
The story of how he was able to overcome these twelve trials, including slaying and capturing a number of mythological beasts, are why Hercules is considered one of the greatest heroes to emerge from the Greek history books.
Achilleas/Achilles: When they ask Brad Pitt to personify you in the movie version of your own life, you know you must be a big deal! Achilles was one of the heroes that Homer brought to life in the first of his two epics, the Iliad.
Within the story, Achilles is portrayed as the greatest general of the Greek army which had been sent to Troy to help them take over the city and bring back Helen, the queen of Sparta, who had been seduced by the Trojan prince Paris.
After a series of events that resulted in the death of his best friend Patroklos, Achilles was so enraged that even the gods themselves could not stop him from hunting down the man responsible and general of the Trojan forces, Hector. Eventually he is said to have died by an arrow to the heel by Paris, which is how the famous phrase “Achilles’ heel” was born.
One of the greatest figures of the Trojan war, Achilles. Source: Guardiaa
Odysseas: The protagonist who emerged from the pages of Homer’s second book, the Odyssey, Odysseas was also a warrior who had fought in the Trojan wars. After the end of the conflict, he decided to make his way home, yet he would discover that was no simple task.
Going through a number of ordeals including escaping from seductive sirens, fighting with titans and a trip to the afterlife, Odysseas finally made it back to his homeland of Ithaca, only to find his beloved Penelope surrounded by a number of suitors. After casually slaying them, they all lived happily ever after!
Perseus: Before Hercules came along, there was Perseus to take care of man-eating beasts! Son of Zeus and the mortal woman Danae, Perseus also possessed the qualities of a half-god, including the inhuman strength that gave him the potential to accomplish incredible feats.
Most notable among them was the slaying of the Gorgon Medusa, a mortal beast which had the ability to turn all men to stone with merely a glare, thanks to the weapons that were bestowed upon him by the gods.
Hector: A warrior who made a name for himself during the Trojan wars, in which he is said to have slayed over 31,000 men. He was the greatest soldier of Troy and the man who took down Patroklos, Achilles’ greatest friend.
Despite his courage and renowned fame, he eventually met his end at the hands of an enraged Achilles, who eventually caught up to him, butchering him and tying his corpse onto his carriage.
A sculpture of Theseus slaying a Centaur. Source: Highbrow
Theseus: The story of Theseus and the Minotaur is one of the most commonly known tales in the isle of Crete. After a battle between the Cretans and the Athenians saw the islanders emerge as the victors, the king of Crete, Minos, demanded a yearly sacrifice for the beast that lived within the labyrinth which was created by Daedalos, the half-man, half-bull Minotaur.
One of the men who volunteered to slay the creature was none other than the king of Athens Aegeus’ son, Theseus. Overcoming the beast thanks to clever strategy and some useful advice from Ariadne, king Minos’ daughter, Theseus returned to Athens to take over as king.
Prometheus: Although Prometheus, the son of Iapetus and Clymene was no mortal, his deeds speak for themselves. Belonging to the titan tribe, he was said to be the one responsible for bringing the humans into existence by using clay and for creating their first civilizations by gifting them with fire, which he had stolen from the gods.
Yet they did not stand idly by after this betrayal. Prometheus’ punishment would be severe as he was tied to a giant boulder with an eagle coming down and eating his entrails, which would grow back the next day, only for the bird to fly back and feed on him once again in an eternal, vicious cycle. He was eventually released by Hercules.
Orpheus: Orpheus was a renowned musician and poet. He rose to mythological status when he travelled to the underworld in an attempt to find his wife, Eurydice, who had been killed by a venomous snake bite to the heel.
As he mourned for her through the sounds of his harp, he was able to soften the heart of even the king of the underworld, Hades, who decided to allow Eurydice to go back to the world of the living as long as Orpheus did not turn around to look at her until after they had reached the surface. Filled with anticipation, the young harpist could not contain himself and lost his loved one for good.
Orpheus attempts to flee the underworld with his beloved Eurydice. Source: Greek Myth Wikia
Jason: Jason was the son of Aeson and rightful heir to the kingdom of Iolcos (today’s city of Volos). When he entered the town to claim his place on the throne from his step-uncle and usurper of the crown, Pelias, he was simply announced as “a man with one sandal.”
In an attempt to rid himself of him, Pelias sent him on a seemingly impossible quest to find the Golden Fleece, yet Jason readily took on this challenge. He assembled his crew and took to the seas in search of the treasure. Some of the most notable members to join Jason on his mission were: Hercules, Orpheus, Atalanta and the Dioskouroi brothers, Castor and Polydevkis.
Atalanta: Atalanta is one of the greatest heroines of Greek mythology. She is mostly known for being among Jason’s crew members on the hunt for the Golden Fleece, but also for slaying the Calydonian Boar.
However, she was also a bit of a tragic figure as she was said to have incurred the wrath of the goddess Aphrodite for choosing instead to worship Artemis, the goddess of the hunt. This made Aphrodite mad and she inflicted both Atalanta and Ippomenes with sexual desire.
They ended up making love in one of Zeus’ temples, a forbidden act which enraged the king of the gods who responded by morphing them both into lions. During the age of Greek mythology, it was said that two lions could never mate with each other, so this was the ideal punishment for the two, who would now remain forever apart.
