The Kastellorizian Association held their annual celebration of the feast of St Constantine and St Helen on May 20, taking the opportunity to mark outstanding contributions from their community.
Those attending the service conducted by Rev Fr Dimitri at the Church of St. Constantine and St. Helen in South Yarra, which was followed by an awards ceremony, included Ms Eleni Lianidou the Victorian Consul-General for Greece, Martin Foley MP and Mr Steve Kirytsis, President of the Hellenic RSL Sub branch.
Ms Lianidou spoke of her detailed and personal knowledge of the history of Kastellorizo and how over centuries the island had retained its Greek identity despite waves of occupation by foreign powers.
The Greek consul also referred to the strategic importance for Greece today and spoke of the outstanding contribution made by people of Kastellorizian heritage to Australia.
At the celebration, student bursaries were presented to Erasmia Antonopoulos, Samantha Garrick, Kristal Kostoglou, Josh Pavlou and Kristen Mihalos. Kristen Mihalos was also awarded the Kastellorizian Youth Achievement Award.
Mr Michael Spartels was awarded the Kastellorizian of the Year Award 2012. This national award is presented annually to a person of Kastellorizian heritage who has achieved distinction in his or her area of endeavour.
As a past President of the Kastellorizian Association and an active member of the community for many years, Mr Spartels was a popular choice.
His contribution to Melbourne’s Greek community includes supervising the construction of the Manse at St. Evstathios Church, South Melbourne and his tireless efforts for others saw him nominated for the Senior Citizens Award for the City of Philip in 2010.