There are 11 Greek Australians who have been selected for honours for their contribution to Australia, and the community out of 1047 Australians awarded in the Australia Day Honours list.
The three categories are: Order of Australia honours (General, Military Divisions); Meritorious awards; Distinguished and Conspicuous awards (Military),
The Australia Day 2023 Honours List has been released and it includes:
For the Order of Australia Honours (OA) list in the General Division, including Honorary General there are a total of 736 people recognised in the Order of Australia Honours (General Division) and in The Queen’s Birthday 2022 list: there are six appointed Companion of the Order (AC); 47 appointed Officer of the Order (AO); 177 appointed Member of the Order (AM); and 506 awarded Medal of the Order (OAM).
This list includes recipients being recognised for their contribution in support of Australia’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. A separate Honour Roll for COVID-19 service has been included in this package.
Women were recognised with 354 awards which is a total of 48 per cent making it the highest percentage of female Order of Australia recipients in an honours list since the introduction of the Australian honours system in 1975.
There has been an effort to increase nominations for outstanding individuals from parts of the community that have been historically underrepresented, including women, multicultural Australians, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
Over 45.4 per cent of awards that is 334 in total were for outstanding service or achievement in the community. The youngest recipient is 37 years old; the eldest living recipient is 102 years old.
The following Greek Australians have been awarded:
General Division
1. The Honourable Emilios Kyrou from Victoria has been awarded Officer of the Order (AO) for his distinguished service to the judiciary and to the law, to professional associations, and to the community.
The Supreme Court Judge been active in the Hellenic community as a member of the Hellenic Australian Lawyers Association, and on the welfare agency Pronia.
He is also an author of legal texts, a well former partner of Corrs Chambers Westgarth and was a tutor at Ormond College.
In a statement to Neos Kosmos the Supreme Court Judge, Emilios Kyrou said he was “deeply honoured to receive the Officer of the Order of Australia award.”
“I regard it as an award not just for me but also for the organisations with which I am associated – including the Supreme Court of Victoria, the charity ‘Pronia’ and the Hellenic Australian Lawyers Association – and their people.”
“I hope that the award inspires young people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities or with disadvantaged backgrounds not only to pursue their chosen careers but to excel. We are very fortunate that Australia provides genuine opportunities for advancement based on merit and hard work,” said the Hon. Emilios Kyrou.
2. Mary Patetsos, from Adelaide was awarded an Member of the Order (AM) for “significant service to multicultural affairs, and to aged care through board positions.”
The former chair of Federation of Ethnic Communities Council of Australia (FECCA) and chair, ACH Group had devoted much of her professional life to the wellbeing and advocacy for multiculturalism and diverse communities.
3. Harilaos Xydas a Cypriot Greek from Perth was awarded an AM for his major contribution to the building and construction industry.
Xydas has been a chair of the DoricGroup and a chair of the Australian Institute of Building since 1989.
4. Elizabeth Exintaris, from Melbourne was awarded Medal of the Order (OAM), for her work in community development, particularly through music.
The conductor, Greek Florinian Choir, current, director of the Antipodes Greek-Australian Song Festival has a distinguished history in community musical development. & Director, Greek Children’s Choir, Victoria.
5. Emanuel George Kallinicos, from Brisbane, was awarded an OAM for his service to the Greek community of Queensland. He is the president of the Greek community of Queensland and the Greek Orthodox Community of St George, Brisbane. He has been the chairman, board of management, Bribie Island Youth Retreat and Recreation Centre, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia, since 2013.
6. Pauline Maniskas, from Wamberal NSW, was awarded an OAM for service to the community of the Central Coast. He is a foundation member and secretary, Central Coast Disabled Surfers Association of Australia, and board director of Camp Breakaway, since 2019.
Community
7. Alexandra Vakitsidis from Adelaide, was awarded an OAM for her service to the Greek community of Adelaide. She is also an ambassador of the Hospital Research Foundation, since 2012 and heads the Greek Friends of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. As a member of the Greek and Greek Cypriot Women in Australia Association, since 1999 she has tirelessly worked to promote Greek issues in SA.
Meritorious honours list
8. Deborah Lynne Efthymiades from Canberra was awarded Public Service Medal (PSM) for her service to public education, and in “leading significant education system policy and reform for the ACT.” Efthymiades is recognised for her ability to provide exceptional leadership and commitment in exercising her role, but also to supporting positive workplace culture and staff advocacy. She has led several education strategies for the ACT to guide all parts of the education system to support and deliver excellence and equity in educational outcomes for every child, making sure early childhood education is high-quality, accessible and affordable.
She has provided impacted as leader in the National School Reform Agreement and associated National Policy Initiatives and her work led significant legislative reforms resulting in a new regulatory model for non-government schools.
9. Denise Constantinou from NSW was awarded an Australian Corrections Medal (ACM) for her work in Corrective Services and is a senior psychologist and team Leader at the Compulsory Drug Treatment Correctional Centre. Throughout her 21-year career, she has been instrumental in the rehabilitation of offenders who need psychological and therapeutic help for Substance Abuse Disorder. She leads a multi-disciplinary team of psychologists, Community Corrections Officers and Services and Programs Officers to deliver an intensive Alcohol or Other Drug (AOD) program. Constantinou provides individual supervision to psychologists, facilitating clinical peer consultation meetings, coordinating training schedules, vetting assessment reports and treatment plans, providing expert opinion in complex cases and overseeing case management recommendations for all program participants.
10. Military distinguished and Conspicuous
Australian Army Colonel John George Papalitsas was awarded a Conspicuous Services Cross (CSC) for outstanding achievement as the Commanding Officer of the North West Mobile Force and as the inaugural Commander of the Regional Force Surveillance Group. Colonel Papalitsas has demonstrated outstanding leadership, innovation, and judgement. His contribution to Border Protection Operations and Indigenous Development have had a profound and enduring effect. His leadership significantly improved the operational capacity and professional reputation of North West Mobile Force and the Regional Force Surveillance Group. His passionate devotion to duty delivered exceptional results in ‘closing the gap’ for indigenous Australians. Colonel Papalitsas’ outstanding achievements have brought great credit upon him and are in the finest traditions of the Australian Defence Force.
