Maribyrnong City Council in Melbourne has given a community grant under its Auspicious Arts that will highlight the history of the Greeks of Yarraville.
Olympia Koziaris who was given the grant will gather untold and unpublished histories of the the Greek residents of Yarraville from the 1950s onwards with special focus on the sixties and seventies. She said she would be visiting aged residents of the suburb as part of the project aim to promote Healthy Ageing and add value to their lives and improve community wellbeing.

“The goal of this project is to produce a publication with stories in the voice of the Greek Yarraville immigrants, supplemented with photographs during the first two decades in which they adapted to their new home, said Ms Koziaris.

The oral histories will be archived at the Immigration Museum, Melbourne’s Living Museum of the West and the State Library Victoria, among others.

READ MORE: Unique oral history project set to cover all corners of Greece

“I am currently looking for photographs of the Greek Community in the Yarraville and Footscray areas during the 1960s. Contact details of the local photographer working in those times would also be welcomed,” said Ms Koziaris.

Ms Koziaris is looking for pictures of:

 The Sun Theatre and how it was used by the Greek community to show Greek films, hold Greek school events and other community events such poem recitals, Greek dancing and theatre;

 Artefacts such as movie tickets, posters advertising movies or Greek movies or of Greek celebrities visiting the area;

 Peter Yiannoudes, the owner of Sun Theatre;

 Former World Championship Wrestling (Australia) wrestler Alex Iakovidis who was a local businessman who owned a kafenion and reception hall in the area;

 Greek business owners in their shops or advertising their products/services in local newspapers;

 Greek schools in the Yarraville/Maribyrnong area; and

 Greek dances and clubs.

“The Vietnamese community have done a lot to record their experiences and we should too because all these valued lives and histories will be lost.”
She said the aim was to “ensure a quality product that can be archived for posterity and passed on to future generations.”
If you have stories and pictures to contribute to the project contact Ms Koziaris on email: karissoly@gmail.com