In an interview with this month’s Gritty Pretty magazine, Jessica Mauboy opens up about her wedding plans with her fiancé Themeli Magripilis.
Mauboy and Magripilis got engaged during a romantic trip to Greece last year, but the bride-to-be revealed the couple haven’t started planning their big day yet.
Jessica Mauboy with Themeli Magripilis.
“You know when you just know that someone loves you so much and they’ve stuck around that long? I think that’s why the wedding plans popped in and then they just went away,” Mauboy said in the magazine interview.
A first group of migrants left Cyprus on Thursday as part of an initiative by Pope Francis to assist in their relocation, the government said.
Twelve migrants left Cyprus for Italy, Cyprus’ interior ministry said.
“We would like to warmly thank Pope Francis and the Holy See for this symbolic gesture and anticipate it will be a step towards substantive solidarity by other (EU) member states towards the Republic of Cyprus,” it said.
The Pope pledged to arrange the transfer of 50 migrants during his visit to the island in early December.
Ethnically divided Cyprus has struggled to manage an influx of migrants and refugees in the past two years.
Many asylum seekers access the southern government-controlled areas through the “Green Line” splitting the island after previously arriving in the breakaway Turkish Cypriot state in its north.
Cyprus, which is the closest EU member state to the Middle East, says arrivals so far this year are up 38 percent compared with the whole of 2020.
Pope Francis, whose defense of refugees and migrants is defining his papacy, also visited Greece and the island of Lesbos earlier this month.
During a previous visit in 2016, Pope Francis left Lesbos, then at the frontline of Europe’s migration crisis, taking 12 Syrian refugees with him.
Eight distinguished diaspora Greeks were awarded the “Argo Award” for excelling in their field and promoting Greece abroad.
The President of the Hellenic Republic, Katerina Sakellaropoulou, presented the awards in a ceremony held on Thursday December 16 at the Benaki Museum in Athens.
Among the laureates, in the field of humanitarian contribution was a Greek-Australian priest, Reverend Themi Adamopoulo currently permanently residing in Sierra Leone, Africa, chancellor (protosygelos) of the Holy Diocese of Guinea, Themistocles Adamopoulos, or “Father Themi”. “That’s what they call me in my home, in Australia,” he stated to the “Greek Herald” in an exclusive statement before the award.
“I was in Sierra Leone when my phone rang and they told me they want to award me for my contribution. It was a special honour for me because it came from a non-secular, non-ecclesiastical group.
Reverend Themi Adamopoulo with children from the St James Orthodox Children’s Orphanage in Sierra Leone.(paradise4kids.org)
“Without wanting to make comparisons and be misunderstood, it reminds me when Mother Teresa was awarded the Nobel”, says Father Themistocles, who at the age of 7 emigrated with his parents from Alexandria, Egypt to Melbourne. There he grew up, studied political science and later converted to Christianity.
In 1999 he began his work against poverty in Kenya. About 8 years later, in 2007, he went to Sierra Leone, where he lives to this day trying to alleviate the suffering of the world’s underprivileged.
In his moving speech at the Benaki Museum, Father Themi thanked the Greeks of Australia for the financial support and underlined that the biggest scandal of today is poverty that afflicts Africa.
The “Argo Awards” are awarded for the third consecutive year and are an initiative of the “International Argo Union – Network of Greeks of Brussels”.
Photo via presidency.gr
Greeks of the Diaspora are recognised in 8 categories. The winners this year are:
* Science Award: Kypros Nikolaides, professor of Fetal Medicine at King’s College London.
* Culture and Arts Award: Jeffrey Eugenides, author.
* Entrepreneurship Award: George Giankopoulos, President and director of the scientific group, “Regeneron Laboratories”.
* Innovation Award: Anastasia Ailamaki, Professor of Computer Science
* Humanitarian Award: Themistoklis Adamopoulos, chancellor of Holy Diocese Of Guinea.
* Award for contribution to the Commons: Margaritis Schinas, Vice-President of the European Commission
* Sport Award: Lefteris Petrounias, Olympic Gymnastics Champion
* Gastronomy Award: Kostas Spiliadis, Founder Of “Milos” Restaurants
Roderick Beaton has won the Runciman Award for his 2019 book Greece: A Biography of a Modern Nation.
It is his record-breaking fourth time winning the award, one for each of the last four consecutive decades.
Peter Frankopan, chair of the panel of judges, called the book “breathtaking”, “brave”, and “ambitious”.
“It is not easy to write broad history for (a) wide readership, and to do so well takes real skill,” he said.
“Covering recent centuries of Greece’s history requires courage too, as many have strong opinions about what should be written about – and how.”
Frankopan fronted the panel beside Dionysis Kapsalis, Naoise Mac Sweeney, Judith Mossman, and Sofka Zinovieff.
“As a jury, we felt that this wonderful book captured the spirit of the Runciman Award perfectly,” Frankopan added.
Beaton first won the prize in 1995 for ‘An Introduction to Modern Greek Literature’, as well as for his biographies on Nobel laureate George Seferis in 2004 and Philhellene Lord Byron in 2014.
The Anglo-Hellenic League offers the award annually to literary works which deal wholly or in part with Greece or Hellenism.
“In its 35-year history, Roddy is the only person to have won the award four times: a tremendous achievement,” John Kittmer, chair of the League, writes.
Microsoft senior regional director Myladie Stoumbou will guest this year’s last Greek Australian Dialogue Series event on Monday.
She will speak about women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers, the Greek economy, the future of work, and post-pandemic trends driven by the acceleration of digital technologies.
The Arta-born leads an international team across eastern Europe and central Asia for one of the biggest technology giants in the world.
Marios Koutsakos has been awarded an $18,000 Victorian Fellowship which will allow him to study human immune responses to flu and COVID-19 vaccines.
Early-career researcher Koustakos is one of twelve fellows and studies microbiology and immunology at the University of Melbourne’s Doherty Institute.
“The fellowship will allow me to visit Washington University (USA) and collaborate with a team there to study human immune responses to influenza and SARS-CoV-2 vaccines,” he said.
“The team I will be working with collects samples from lymphoid tissues (like the lymph node and the bone marrow) which provides for unique opportunity to better understand how vaccines work.”
He has focussed on understanding protective immunity to influenza, especially influenza B, viruses.
He said he hopes to apply the training he receives in the US to vaccine development in Victoria.
He said he first became fascinated by immunology and viruses while studying in London.
“I was amazed by how something so small and relatively simple, when compared to humans, can take over our bodies,” he said.
“Through a series of unlikely but very fortunate events, I then found myself 16000 kilometers further away at the Kedzierska lab at the Doherty Institute, where I became fascinated by human immunology and the complexity of the immune system.”
Liquidators of the Forum Group of Companies have sold off almost 600 abandoned waste digester machines built by waste processor subsidiary Iugis.
McGrathNicol is reported to have received the funds from suspected buyer New Leaf Technologies (NLT) on Thursday.
Former consultants of Iugis set up NLT in 2019, but the key figures have operated in the environmental finance space since 2009.
NLT chief executive Matt Wildsoet said he had big plans for the business and the potential of the waste digesters.
“We’re thrilled to be able to continue the good work and principles of the business and the desired outcomes from an environmental perspective,” he said.
“The hard work that had been done we want to continue and we’re thrilled to be able to do that.”
NLT, similar to the Forum Group, offers customers assistance in securing funding and providing financial solutions to develop and fund “sustainable operations and infrastructure”.
Almost 300 of the machines have been sitting for months in a warehouse in Western Sydney, after being shipped from Iugis’ manufacturing site in Thessaloniki.
Another 300 of the machines are in service around Australia with former Iugis customers.
Customers linked to having the machines include private hospitals, the Pullman Hotel in Hyde Park, and Sydney pub The Fiddler.
The buyer also wins the right to continue servicing the machines leased by the customers, in a similar deal to that struck to sell the printer rental business at the core of the Forum Group.
But the long-mooted deal has been languishing for months, with the final sale requiring approvals by Forum creditors.
The funds from the sale go towards repaying Forum Group’s creditors, who are owed almost $400m after the company collapsed with allegations former chief executive Bill Papas oversaw a years-long scheme to defraud financiers through a false lease invoice scheme.
The Federal Court has heard allegations Mr. Papas funded the Iugis business, which manufactured and supplied the waste digester machines, through the scheme.
Papas set up a manufacturing site in Greece, with his business partner Anastasios Giamouridis, to make the machines.
The site is no longer operating.
Westpac has named Giamouridis in its case, alleging he received $10.7m in funds he was not entitled to.
Giamouridis also owns at least one percent of Mazcon, a corporate entity Papas used to buy the Greek football team Xanthi FC.
Until recently Giamouridis was also CEO of Xanthi FC, however, he resigned and was replaced at the team’s recent annual general meeting.
Year 12 student Steven Kostopoulos has graduated as dux of Oakleigh Grammar in Melbourne with an ATAR of 96.1 and VCE scores above 40.
He was followed by school captain Alexander Logan (91.4) and “hard-working” student Athanasios Millaras (91.15) to be the only three students to graduate with an ATAR over 90.
Just over half of all graduates scored ATARs over 70.
Steven Kostopoulos (middle) with Oakleigh Grammar Principal Mark Robertson and Board Treasurer Sam Vassos (Image: Supplied)
“The results this year are a testament to the determination and resilience of our students who never conceded but continued to push through despite the challenges faced over the past two years,” Oakleigh Grammar said in a statement.
“We are very proud of each and every one of our graduates and wish them well for the next part of their educational journey.”
Year 11 student Maria Andreou (left) also achieved a 44/50 net score in Modern Greek (Images: Supplied)
Year 11 student Maria Andreou also achieved a 44/50 net score in Modern Greek.
“I am very proud of Maria’s success since she managed to excel in very difficult conditions,” a translated statement from Natasha Spanos, coordinator of the school’s language department, said.
Labor unions led by the Greek Communist Party staged a protest during a parliamentary budget debate Thursday.
They demand a return of wage and pension levels that were axed during three successive international bailouts.
Some 2,000 protesters gathered in front of the parliament building in central Athens as lawmakers debated the 2022 budget.
The budget includes a proposed 2 percent minimum wage increase that would take effect on Jan. 1.
Bailouts financed by other eurozone countries and the International Monetary Fund when Greece was on the brink of bankruptcy during 2010-2018 resulted in repeated salary and pension cuts.
The minimum wage was reduced by more than 20 percent in 2012.
About half of the decrease was restored after the bailouts ended, and the minimum currently is 758.33 euros ($857.23) on an average monthly basis.
Greek Finance Minister Christos Staikouras said despite the 6.9 percent growth forecast for this year, spending on the health service and income support during the pandemic allow for only modest increases in social spending.
Shortly after the release of the fifth instalment of her ‘Ikoyenia’ series of books titled “Christmas With my Family” we took the opportunity to sit down with Greek Australian journalist and author Stephanie Timotheou to discuss all about her recent work and why reading is a great way for kids to learn more about the Greek language and culture.
–Stephanie, what can you tell us about your fifth book of the Ikoyenia series, that recently hit the book stores – without spoiling the plot?
Christmas With My Family is a beautiful rhyming story about the true meaning behind Christmas. It blends a little bit of religion with loads of fun and festivity. But the heart and soul of it is about spending time with family on Christmas Day and appreciating what we already have.
– What gives you inspiration to keep writing?
My kids! I started the series when I was a mum of one and now that we’ve welcomed our second little bundle of joy, it makes me even more excited to extend the Ikoyenia series. I love being able to give them something they can cherish forever and hopefully I can, in turn, inspire them to do whatever their hearts desire – just as I did.
-How did the pandemic impact your writing and what advice would you give to other aspiring writers?
My best advice would be: just keep writing! Even if you think what you’re writing is terrible.
During the pandemic I had huge moments of doubt and writer’s block. It was hard to keep a momentum going when there were so many other things on my mind. But I was persistent and continued writing – even at 3am after an idea would come to me in my sleep.
-When you’re not writing, what do you like to read?
Sadly, I haven’t read anything other than children’s books in about three years! Our favourites at the moment are The Very Cranky Bear by Nick Bland and various Little People Big Dreams books.
– If you had 15 words to persuade someone that the Ikoyenia series should be their childrens’ next read, what would you say?
Bond with your child through story time while also learning Greek – it’s a win-win situation!
*Christmas With My Family is a special edition book and limited copies are now available at www.ikoyenia.com.au
