In March, Greek Australian Spiros Kakios set off to Sydney airport for his journey to Greece. He was especially anxious about this journey as he desperate to reunite with his brother who was gravely ill.
To his dismay he was not allowed on board the plane, though he had with him all the necessary documents. And a few hours later Australia closed the borders.
He returned to Liberty Tours from where he had bought his ticket to see what could be done.
Liberty Tours in Marrickville, Sydney, has always enjoyed assisting a number of local clients with their annual visits home, amongst them several of Greek descent, who often pop in to say hello. Mr Kakios was one of them. His situation moved the team at the agency to tears. They became even more determined to help him when they found out that his brother had passed away in May.
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As soon as the borders were reopened for compassionate travel, Alex Lee from the agency, got to work. Applying for an exemption to travel is no easy task. As Mr Kakios became confused with the consistently changing rules and with a limited command of English, Mr Lee reached out to the Greek Orthodox Community of NSW and asked the assistance of social welfare worker coordinator Dominique George.
Ms George who frequently assists many members of the local Greek community with language-based struggles, helped Mr Kakios with the online application process, and the composition of the cover letter for the travel exception, and was very happy to receive the final approval documentation.
After returning a negative result to the required pre-flight COVID-19 test, Mr Kakios was able to board his flight to Greece at the end of September and he is now safely in the care of his family in Greece.
His wife, Sotiria Kakios, who is still in Australia, is hoping to join him next year, so they can celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary together.
