The Sydney Greek Dancing School recently held their annual dance concert at the Bryan Brown Theatre to a sold-out audience.
120 of the School’s dance students, along with Karagiozi and his family, attempted to teach NIONIO (who has two left feet), how to dance for his upcoming wedding.
All photos supplied by Bourdo Photography.
The plot thickened when NIONIO revealed to everyone in the audience that he doesn’t know how to dance and that he lied to his fiancé about being a fabulous dancer.
Students were then encouraged to help NIONIO find his Greek Groove.
The St Elesa Food Initiative has continued its mission of compassion in Sydney, distributing over 520 meals and 75 hygiene packages to those in need.
The initiative is supported by His Grace Bishop Christodoulos of Magnesia, parish priest Father Athanasios Giatsios, and members of the Philoptochos and Kogarah Orthodox Youth.
Hygiene packages, carefully assembled by Philoptochos members, include essentials like toothpaste, sunscreen, hats, and shampoo, aimed at helping the homeless during the festive season.
Acknowledging the growing demand for support, its members expressed gratitude for the community’s generosity. They remain committed to meeting the increasing needs of Sydney’s most vulnerable.
For Victor Prineas, running a restaurant and leaving customers with smiles and full bellies has been his lifelong passion and reality for more than 50 years.
From the age of seven, the Greek Australian cook developed his love for the kitchen, following in the footsteps of his family members who worked in several businesses throughout his life.
“My parents were always in hospitality. I saw how hard they were working every day, and they really inspired me. I wanted to help them, “Victortold The Greek Herald.
The beginning of Victor’s culinary career
Born in Sydney’s Camperdown Hospital in 1962, Victor’s early years began in Braidwood, before moving into Canberra, and then back to Queanbeyan, New South Wales.
“I remember working at the Braidwood Royal Cafe when I was about seven years old, where I would throw wood under the grill so my father could cook breakfast,” Victor said.
“A few years later, when I was about 12 years old, my father bought a pizza place in the city in Canberra called Sorrento’s, and I was working there every afternoon after school and on weekends.
“Basically, from day one, everything I’ve learnt is from my parents and I’ve loved being in the kitchen ever since.”
Victor said his family owned Sorrento’s from 1977 to 1987. Over the years, they moved around to different businesses and restaurants across NSW and the ACT, with their next chapter being at Central Café in Queanbeyan from 1987 to 2007.
Victor then took over Central Café in Gungahlin, Canberra, from 2007-2017, and then moved on to the Queanbeyan Golf Club from 2017 to 2024 – where he became the face of the Golf Club and was known for his delicious food and generous portions.
Greek influence
As his father, Peter, was from Kastoria, and his mother, Paula, was from Lesvos, Victor’s cooking became heavily influenced by his Greek heritage. Many of the recipes he learnt were passed down from his mother and different women in his life growing up.
“There’s nothing better than Greek food,” Victor said.
“We have always tried to do a little bit of Greek here and there on our menus too.
“We’re known for our Greek salads, and every now and then we add a Greek twist to the menu – that includes things like lamb dishes and traditional Greek gyros.”
Secrets to success
Victor said what he loves most about cooking is the joy it brings to others.
“The best part about cooking is watching the surprise on the customers’ faces when they see the plate that I serve,” Victor said.
He added that commitment to quality and fair pricing is what keeps people coming back.
“It’s about making people happy and not ripping them off. I’m fair,” Victor said.
“I’d rather have 300 or 400 customers a day, than 50 customers a day. It’s about making a little bit, but also getting the people in and keeping them satisfied.”
New beginnings
This year, Victor took on his most recent role as head cook at his son’s newly opened business – Victor’s.
Located at the Queanbeyan RSL Memorial Bowling Club, Victor’s opened on June 11 and is already a hit amongst the community with 300-400 patrons dining in daily.
“The first Friday night I was here, I left the kitchen while the place was chock-a-block and I started dancing on the floor,” Victor said.
“I just love the community here in Queanbeyan, and they love me. They’ve been so supportive since we opened, and it’s been such an incredible journey so far.”
The face behind Victor’s
Peter Prineas, the son of Victor and Phillepena Prineas, said he wanted to carry on his dad’s legacy and open Victor’s.
“My dad has made a great name for himself, and he’s worked really hard all of his life, but he can’t go on forever, so I thought, why not keep his name going and create a new space for people to enjoy,” Peter told The Greek Herald.
“Every time someone would go to eat where my dad worked, they’d say ‘I’m going to Victor’s’, so I decided to name the business after him and continue his legacy as he’s so well-known and loved by everyone.”
Peter said after growing up seeing how hard his dad and granddad worked to run a business, he wanted to follow in their footsteps.
“My family has always been in business and it’s just something that’s inside of us,” he said. “Our goal is to continue giving the people what they want, and we hope they enjoy it.”Although working with family can be challenging and involve a lot of sacrifice, Peter said it’s a rewarding experience and he looks forward to the future of Victor’s and continuing to serve the community what they know and love.
The Greek Language and Culture Institute (GLCI) of Evangelismos celebrated the conclusion of its 2024 academic year with a vibrant event at Belmont City College Auditorium on November 23.
The gathering, attended by 200–250 people, featured a mix of performances, addresses, and recognitions, showcasing the Institute’s achievements.
GLCI Principal Dr Polichroni Koutsakis opened the event, drawing inspiration from Nobel laureate Giorgos Seferis’ poem “Just a bit more,” and highlighting the community’s collective accomplishments.
Students performed Christmas-themed plays, traditional dances, and songs, earning applause for their polished delivery. Bishop Elpidios delivered a message emphasising Christmas’ spirit of giving and presented the school with a signed poster from His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.
The Consul of Greece praised the students’ Greek language proficiency and the school’s remarkable growth in just three years. A comedic film by senior students and a play addressing modern social isolation added a mix of humour and reflection.
Certificates of Attainment in Greek were awarded to 13 successful candidates by the Consul and the principal. Teachers also presented special awards to outstanding students.
The event ended with a collective performance by students, followed by a whole-school photo and a generous Lenten feast, leaving attendees impressed and well-fed.
In the lead up to the ranking of South Australia’s 100 most influential people of 2024 to be revealed in December, The Advertiser has released its 2024 Power 20 list, ranking figures of political power within SA.
Landing in at number six, SA Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Energy and Mining, Tom Koutsantonis has been recognised for his service as the government’s chief advocate in countering opposition critiques.
He leads the transformative Torrens to Darling project, South Australia’s largest-ever infrastructure undertaking, and spearheads the ambitious Hydrogen Jobs Plan.
Koutsantonis‘ influence also resides in the pivotal role he plays in ensuring BHP delivers on its copper development commitments, driving economic growth for the state.
Bernice Miller, a great-grandmother who has lived in her three-level Sydney home since 1971, has been left frustrated and upset after paying $32,000 to tradesman Leon Leonidas Tsounakas for a new staircase that was never installed.
According to A Current Affair, Miller, who initially hired Tsounakas for painting work, trusted him to replace her old spiral staircase after being pleased with his earlier job. However, after removing the staircase, Tsounakas failed to complete the work.
“I trusted him, he had lovely brown eyes and he was so sincere with me,” Miller told the program. “I’m very upset because I had trusted him.”
The staircase has been removed.Photo: Nine.
With no exterior staircase, Miller now has no emergency escape from the top floor.
“I told him I was worried. I told him if there was a fire I’d need that fire escape,” she explained. “He doesn’t care.”
After A Current Affair intervened, Tsounakas contacted Miller, offering to “come to an agreement” if she withdrew her claims from the show and a local court, which had ordered his company, STS Painting Group, to repay the $32,000.
Tsounakas has since transferred $20,000 to Miller’s account, but still owes her $12,000.
“He knows I’m on my own, he knows I’m older, it’s mean,” Miller said.
Western Australia’s Liberal leader Libby Mettam has retained her position following internal pressure to step aside, as speculation swirls around Perth Lord Mayor and media personality Basil Zempilas potentially taking the party’s reins.
In a tense party room meeting, Ms Mettam survived a leadership challenge after a motion of no confidence failed to materialise.
“I gave my colleagues the opportunity to move a motion of no confidence. No one did,” Ms Mettam said, adding, “We can now put this debacle behind us and move forward as a party to contest the March 2025 state election.”
The challenge was sparked by leaked polling suggesting the Liberals’ primary vote would increase by 7% under Zempilas, dubbed “The Basil Effect.” The polling, not commissioned by the party, was reportedly funded by private business interests and presented to Ms Mettam weeks earlier.
Ms Mettam alleged the aim of the research was to pressure her into resigning to make way for Zempilas.
“I was told I should step aside quickly if I wanted to avoid the polling being provided to the media to further damage me and the Liberal Party,” she said.
Libby Mettam.
Zempilas, currently the Liberal candidate for Churchlands and not a sitting MP, has ruled out directly challenging Ms Mettam, but has not dismissed the possibility of leading the party before the next election. Supporters point to the 2011 case of Campbell Newman in Queensland as a precedent for an outsider taking leadership ahead of an election.
Ms Mettam firmly stated that she would not serve as deputy leader under Zempilas.
“It probably would not be appropriate that I’d be part of the leadership team,” she told ABC Radio Perth.
Despite speculation, former WA Premier Colin Barnett expressed his support for both figures, stating, “I think Libby Mettam and Basil Zempilas are the future of the Liberal Party.”
The WA Liberals, nearly wiped out in the 2021 election, are under pressure to rebuild ahead of March 2025. Some party members view Zempilas as a potential game-changer, but for now, Mettam remains at the helm, urging unity and focus on the election campaign.
On the third day of the International Theological Conference on “Orthodox Theology in the 21st Century: Challenges and Prospects,” Archbishop Makarios of Australia delivered a presentation on the intersection of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Orthodox Theology.
The conference, hosted by the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens under the auspices of the Church of Greece, featured discussions on pressing contemporary issues.
Addressing the thematic unit “Biotechnological Sciences and Theology,” Archbishop Makarios examined the concept of the “mind” through patristic teachings, emphasising its distinction from AI.
He stated, “The mind is central in patristic thought and is identified as the locus of God’s image in humanity.” While AI simulates human intelligence, he argued, it cannot replicate the human mind, which in Orthodox theology is uniquely capable of knowing God.
Another clergy speaker at the conference.
Archbishop Makarios also warned against framing AI as a competitor to human capabilities, asserting, “Artificial intelligence and technological achievements are images of man, not of God. It is man who determines the being and quality of artificial intelligence.”
He advocated for the Church’s active engagement with technological advancements, urging understanding and dialogue rather than criticism or fear.
“The ethos of the Gospel cannot condone a morality where humanity is detached from God,” he remarked, highlighting the Church’s role in addressing AI ethics. He encouraged the Church to approach scientific progress with love and understanding, stating, “Orthodox Theology should provide a foundation where every scientific endeavour is grounded in divine love.”
Archbishop Makarios concluded by challenging the Church to embrace the opportunities and challenges posed by AI, emphasising the need for collaboration between theology and science in service of humanity.
Archbishop Makarios has been accompanying His-All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew during his visit to Greece this month. On November 17, the Archbishop was also at the Church of Panagia Balino in Constantinople to take part in a Divine Liturgy officiated by the Patriarch.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan and Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes joined community and multicultural leaders on Tuesday, November 26 to announce the Justice Legislation Amendment (Anti-vilification and Social Cohesion) Bill 2024, which will:
Protect more Victorians from vilification – which is the worst kind of hate speech or conduct that profoundly hurts people and undermines social cohesion.
Introduce new criminal offences for serious vilification, such as inciting hatred or threatening physical harm against someone because of who they are or what faith they follow.
Strengthen existing civil protections against vilification and provide more options for people to seek remedy and resolution if they have been harmed.
Protect the right to free speech and religion by creating a new defence for political expression and recognising exceptions for religious and artistic purposes, and more.
Premier Jacinta Allan, flanked by attorney general Jaclyn Symes, outlines Labor’s plans to overhaul Victoria’s anti-vilification laws. Photo: Joel Carrett/AAP.
Protecting more Victorians from vilification
There are existing legal protections against vilification for race and religion.
Under the Bill, protections will be extended to cover disability, gender identity, sex, sex characteristics, sexual orientation, and personal association with a person who has a protected attribute– for example, being the parent of a disabled child.
That means all Victorians, in some shape or form, will be protected against vilification and hate for who they are, what faith they follow, where they’re from or who they love or care for.
Introducing new criminal offences for serious vilification
The reforms will create two criminal offences to respond to serious vilification:
It will be an offence to incite hatred, serious contempt, revulsion or severe ridicule against another person or group based on their protected attribute
It will be an offence to threaten physical harm or property damage against a person or a group based on their protected attribute.
These offences will be placed in the Crimes Act, where they belong. They will apply when incitement or threats occur in Victoria in any context – private, public or online.
They will be easier to prove than Victoria’s current serious vilification offences, with stronger penalties of up to five years imprisonment to hold perpetrators to account for their actions.
Strengthening existing civil protections against vilification
The Bill strengthens current laws to help protect people from things that are said or done in public or online that harm them.
This new harm-based protection could capture conduct such as posting photos publicly on social media that severely ridicule a person with disability or expressing hateful comments about a group’s race at a public meeting.
The Bill also modifies existing protections against incitement to now include public conduct that is likely to incite hatred or revulsion, which reflects how the legal test is currently applied by the courts.
People and groups will still be able to make a complaint and seek a remedy through dispute resolution services at the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission or the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
Having this avenue for civil as well as criminal action will provide alternative options to address harm, including through an apology, compensation or removing harmful material.
Protecting and promoting the right to free speech and religion
This is all about protecting people’s right to practice their religion, free from threats, vilification and severe ridicule in public. That is one of the most important religious freedoms of all and is at the heart of social cohesion in Victoria.
The Bill recognises freedoms by retaining the current exceptions in the law that protect activities done for genuine religious, academic, artistic, public interest or scientific reasons.
To be clear, that means the Bill protects genuine and legitimate religious activities, such as worshipping, practising, proselytising and teaching religion.
To further protect free speech, the Bill introduces a new ‘political expression’ defence for the criminal incitement offence, to protect political communication and allow everyone to engage in genuine and robust debate.
‘Social cohesion is fundamental’:
Bill Papastergiadis OAM at the press conference.
During the press conference on Tuesday, Ms Allan praised the new Bill.
“The Victoria I love is a place where we come from hundreds of different backgrounds, but we are one community – Victoria united. Everyone deserves to be safe in our state, free of hate,” she said.
“These strong new laws support social cohesion by making it easier for police to charge anyone found to be inciting violence against specific groups or individuals on the basis of their race, religion and more… It also expands protections for more Victorians, because it should absolutely be against the law to vilify someone for being a woman or for being in a wheelchair. This is simply about fairness for all.”
Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes also addressed the matter: “Right now, we have Victorians and their loved ones who are afraid to be who they are without being the target of shame, ridicule or hatred. We have a responsibility to them and all Victorians to call out hateful behaviour and send a message that when the worst happens, we have their back.”
“Freedom of expression is important — but this must be balanced with the vital right for Victorians to be safe and take part in public life. That’s what our laws will aim to achieve,” Ms Symes added.
President of the Greek Community of Melbourne (GCM) and Commissioner at the Victorian Multicultural Commission, Bill Papastergiadis, was also present at the press conference and declared, “Social cohesion is a fundamental part of our society and we need to work hard to protect it.”
“Underpinning social cohesion are important values such as social justice, acceptance, belonging and participation. A society that achieves social cohesion does not do so by chance. We all must work hard to ensure that social cohesion is not impacted and underpinning all of this is often a legislative framework. Legislation that helps to enshrine social justice is an essential part of any civilised society,” Mr Papastergiadis added.
“We know from the research by the Scanlon Institute that in 2024 there was an increase in negative attitudes towards multiculturalism and immigration. At the same time, there were increased reporting of racism and discrimination.
“The above research and trends point to the importance of all of us being vigilant about treating one another fairly and with respect, and being vigilant about the values that shape our community.”
What’s next
The reforms have been informed by significant consultation, including with those most impacted by hate speech and conduct such as those experiencing anti-Semitism, homophobia and Islamophobia, and aim to carefully balance the right to freedom of expression, equality, religion and belief.
Just as the community has helped to shape this Bill, the Government commits to continuing to work with community groups over the coming months to listen, answer questions and take feedback.
US President-elect Donald Trump has endorsed Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis, a Greek American, to replace Matt Gaetz in the US House of Representatives.
Gaetz vacated his seat earlier this month after being nominated by Trump to lead the Department of Justice. However, Gaetz withdrew his bid for attorney general last week following allegations of sexual misconduct.
In his endorsement, Trump praised Patronis as “a wonderful friend” and a “fourth-generation Floridian from the beautiful Panhandle,” highlighting his commitment to key MAGA priorities.
“As your next Congressman, Jimmy would work tirelessly alongside of me to Grow our Economy, Secure our Border, Stop Migrant Crime, Strengthen our Incredible Military/Vets, Restore American Energy DOMINANCE, and Defend our always under siege Second Amendment,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, urging him to run.
