Members of Australia’s Greek community continue to feature strongly in the Australia Day Honours list, with at least 14 recipients of Hellenic background being recognised this year.
This is a testament to how our community at large has added significantly to the wellbeing of Australia in all aspects of life.
This year there are 1,042 recipients in all the divisions, including awards in the Order of Australia (General and Military Divisions), meritorious awards and recognition for distinguished and conspicuous service.
Using the criterion of the Greek surname, we have identified 14 recipients from our community though there may be others who have also received Australia Day Honours.
In the category Member of the Order of Australia (AM) are Ms Varvara Athanasiou-Ioannou, Ms Anastasia Darras and Mr Jimy Liaskos.
In the category Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) are Mr Peter Christopher, Mr Elias Doufas, Mr Peter Leondaritis, Mr Constantine Pagonis, Ms Evdokia Panagacos and Mrs Ellen Diane Casimaty.
Also in the list for an OAM is historian and well-known figure of the Greek community, Mr James (Jim) Claven.
Other recipients of Australia Day Honours are Mr Nicholas Magriplis, NSW, who has received a Public Service Medal (PSM) and is on the COVID-19 Honour Roll.
In the category Australian Fire Service Medal (AFSM) are Mr John Katakouzinos and Mr Costa Katsikis, both from Fire Rescue Victoria.
Superintendent Jonathan Kazandzis from the Western Australia Police Force has received an Australian Police Medal (APM).
Ms Jenny Gianakis, from the Office of National Intelligence, has received an Australian Intelligence Medal (AIM).
1. Ms Varvara Athanasiou-Ioannou AM, Templestowe VIC, for significant service to the community, particularly through inclusion and diversity initiatives, in a range of roles.
Ms Athanasiou-Ioannou has been active in numerous roles among the community, particularly with the Food For Thought Network of which she is the Founder and Chair, a group which promotes awareness about the barriers and enablers to women’s development and thus inspire positive change in individuals and the community in general.
She emphasised the incredible honour of being recognised with an AM, particularly under the 2024 International Women’s Day theme, “Inspire Inclusion.”
“Since my arrival in Australia, I have passionately championed diversity and inclusion, striving for systemic cultural change. Becoming the voice of the voiceless, I have advocated for the less privileged, fostering inclusivity in schools, universities, corporations, and communities,” she said.
“The Order of Australia recognition, bestowed upon me by my nominees, fills me with gratitude and a great responsibility to continue. I am eager to share this award with my supporters and colleagues. This accolade validates my voluntary work and encourages a continued impactful journey. I hope my story inspires others to contribute to a more inclusive world.”
2. Ms Anastasia Darras AM, Moonee Valley VIC, for significant service to community health, particularly to ill children and their families.
Ms Darras has contributed considerably in her role as Co-founder and Program Director of the charity, TLC for Kids, which aims at helping sick kids and their families cope with the challenges of everyday life with illness.
She labelled the honour “truly humbling” and said she is “sincerely grateful for the chance it provides to cast a spotlight on TLC for Kids and the resilient families we stand beside”.
“The inception of TLC for Kids stemmed from a genuine concern – observing that many charities were illness-specific, we made the commitment to assist every ailing child, irrespective of their medical condition,” Ms Darras said, whose family arrived in Adelaide from Aifousa in the Peloponnese in the late 1950s.
“This accolade is not just an acknowledgment of my efforts but an opportunity to illuminate the profound impact TLC for Kids has on the lives of countless children and their families.”
3. Mr Jimy Liaskos AM, Bundoora VIC, for significant service to business and to industry as a leader and mentor.
Mr Liaskos has served in various roles, especially in business, and expressed his gratitude in being recognised through this distinction.
“Like anyone receiving an honour such as this I’m both humbled and pleased, as well as a bit surprised,” Mr Liaskos said while noting the deep impact his parents had on him.
He mentioned that his parents came to Australia in 1950 from the small village of Makrochori near the city of Kastoria, with the goal of making a new life for themselves just after the civil war ended.
“They were the guiding inspiration in our lives; working hard and focussed on family and community, and to ensure their children were a credit to their new homeland as Australians of Greek-Macedonian heritage.”
4. Mr Elias Doufas OAM, Balwyn VIC, for service to the Greek community of Victoria.
Mr Doufas has contributed greatly in a number of roles at various Greek community associations, including with the Greek Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria, the Gold Coast Greek Community, the Australasian Hellenic Educational Progressive Association (AHEPA) and more.
Addressing this recognition, he said “I am honoured to receive the OAM award and regard myself privileged to be recognised amongst other well-serving citizens in our multicultural Australian community”.
“It has been my pleasure to serve over many years in many different organisations, especially amongst our Hellenic community,” Mr Doufas said.
“I believe strongly that we as Hellenes, who have a proud history, have much to contribute and should be doing more to spread our language and culture within our multicultural society.”
5. Mr Constantine Pagonis OAM, Blacburn VIC, for service to the multicultural community of Victoria.
Mr Pagonis has participated in a number of voluntary roles over the years, including serving on the Ethnic Communities Council of Victoria since 2015, as well as acting as Multicultural Policy Advisor for the Municipal Association of Victoria (2008-2015).
Speaking on the OAM, he said:
“I thank the many people I work with at various community organisations for giving me the opportunity to continue contributing in my ‘third age’. I particularly thank my wife Julie who has consistently encouraged and supported my volunteering work.”
6. Mr Peter George Christopher OAM, Athelstone SA, for service to community history.
Mr Christopher is well-known for his work in maritime archaeology, particularly as the co-Director in the restoration of the world’s oldest Clipper Ship, “City of Adelaide”.
He was born in Larnaca, Cyprus in July 1948, to Greek Cypriot parents and migrated to Australia in October of the same year when he was three months old.
Speaking on the OAM, he said he is “honoured to receive the Award, on behalf of many others who I have worked with”.
“As a scuba diver I also researched and wrote about shipwrecks. For the past 24 years I have led the project to save the historic clipper ship ‘City of Adelaide’. I even gave a presentation in Greek to a school in Cyprus a few years ago about the ship,” Mr Christopher said.
7. Ms Evdokia Yvonne Panagacos OAM, Kew VIC, for service to the Greek community of Melbourne.
Ms Panagacos has been a very active member in our community, serving in a number of positions at associations like the Lyceum Club Melbourne, the Kastellorizian Council of Australia, the Kastellorizian Association of Victoria and the Humanities Foundation Board of the University of Melbourne.
She said she is humbled to be recognised with this award, noting that “a number of supportive friends and family have helped and encouraged me along the way- especially my dear husband George”.
“I hope this award will encourage others to engage in public service to enhance and improve our society. There are many talented and capable people who have valuable skills to contribute,” Ms Panagacos said.
8. Mr Peter Leondaritis OAM, NSW, for service to the Greek community of New South Wales.
9. Mrs Ellen Diane Casimaty OAM, TAS, for service to the museums and galleries sector.
Another recipient of an OAM General is Mr James (Jim) Claven, a well-known figure of the Greek community who has researched and written works covering extensively the ANZAC campaigns in Greece during both World Wars (particularly in Lemnos and Gallipoli).
Mr Claven stressed that he was very appreciative of being recognised with an OAM, and that it comes as a result of the numerous veterans, families and Hellenes in Australia, Greece and beyond sharing their stories with him and supporting his work over the years.
“Their generosity has enabled me to apply my skills as a historian to hopefully enrich our understanding of these important aspects of our past such as the role of Lemnos and Imbros in Australia’s Gallipoli story,” the historian said.
“For me they are experiences that connect people and places across the world, in their way telling a story of migration and of peoples coming together, even in the shadow of war.”
He also extended sincere gratitude to his late parents, Margaret and Jim, who migrated with the entire family from Scotland to build a new life in Australia.
“They always encouraged my academic studies, especially in history. Their sacrifices – like many migrants – have played a large part in my own endeavours. I thank them and know they would have been very happy for me.”
Among this list are also 49 Australians on the COVID-19 Honour Roll, recognising their contribution in the nation’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
10. Mr Nicholas Magriplis (PSM), NSW, for outstanding public service to public education, in particular, the delivery of COVID-19 related services.
11. Mr John Katakouzinos (AFSM) from Fire Rescue Victoria
Mr Katakouzinos, whose parents were both born on the island of Limnos, expressed sincere gratitude for this award, saying:
“I am truly honoured and humbled by this recognition and so grateful for the opportunities the Country Fire Authority (CFA) and Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) have given me,”,
“I could not have achieved this without the support of my family and work friends who have been there for me every step of the way. Once again, thank you for your support and encouragement. It means a lot to me.”
12. Mr Costa Katsikis (AFSM) from Fire Rescue Victoria
13. Superintendent Jonathan Kazandzis (APM) from Western Australia Police Force
14. Ms Jenny Gianakis (AIM) from the Office of National Intelligence
Also among the list in the category Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) is Emeritus Professor Deborah Gale Theodoros, QLD, for distinguished service to community health, to rehabilitation sciences, and to tertiary education, who is not of Hellenic background herself but rather married to a Greek man.
