With the Hellenism of the diaspora being demographically almost half Greece’s population, the Secretariat General for Greeks Abroad, together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, have been cooperating closely for years to ensure that the Greek diaspora remains connected and the ties with the motherland strong.
For the first time after a five year long break due to the economic struggles of Greece, annual summer camps, for children of the Greek diaspora to get a first-hand experience of the country of their ancestry, will begin again this year. The camps are hosted in Malesina, Fthiotida and in Epanomi, outside of Thessaloniki.
The camping program has often been praised as one of the most successful programs run in the more than 30 year history of the Greek Secretariat for Greeks Abroad, supervised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It was thanks to these summer camps that tens of thousands of children of Greek ancestry from all over the globe have visited Greece, including numerous Greek Australians.
The General Consulate of Greece in Sydney has now invited teachers and parents of children of Greek origin from New South Wales, between 9-13 years old, to participate in 2014 summer camps.
A group of nine children from NSW will be selected, based on the criteria that one of the parents is of Greek origin, the applicant is 9-13 years old, and that parents are not employees of the Greek State abroad.
Alongside their application forms and other required documents, the applicants can also include a certificate that the child is attending Greek language lessons, a certificate by Greek Associations that the child participates in activities relevant to Greek culture or a reference for good or excellent grades in the Greek language.
Children who are close to the age of 13 will be prioritised, as they won’t have the chance to participate in the future.
Based on the expression of interest for the last summer camp, in 2008, Canberra, Adelaide and Perth have been allocated two positions each, while nine positions will be available for applicants in both Melbourne and Sydney.
This year, the participants from Australia will take part in the summer camp in Malesina. The expenses of the camping program are covered by the General Secretariat for Greeks Abroad. The GCSA will also be responsible for the children’s transportation from the airport of Athens or Thessaloniki to the camps, while the flight costs to and from Greece will be covered by the parents.
The camps, specially designed for the needs of children of the Greek diaspora and featuring lessons of Greek language and history, excursions and visits to historical and archeological locations, will be held from 15 to 29 July 2014, in Epanomi, outside of Thessaloniki, and from 7 until 21 August 2014 in Malesina, Fthiotida.
The deadline for applications for the Epanomi summer camp is 11 April, and 15 April for Malesina summer camp.
The Education office in Sydney is only responsible for NSW applications. Information for any other state’s program can be requested from the Consulate of Greece in the respective state.
For application forms and other required documents, contact your State Consulate. For further information, NSW applicants can contact hellenicedu.sydney@yahoo.com.au