South Australia’s Greek community were given a taste of Ikarian culture in the form of a cooking workshop led by Ikarian members, Chief Justice of South Australia (SA), Chris Kourakis and founder of Eatwell By Kitchenhand, Tina Germanos.
The event was hosted by Neoléa, the youth committee of the Greek Orthodox Community of SA, in collaboration with the Pan-Ikarian Brotherhood of Australia on Sunday 26 May at the Ikaros Hall in Unley.
The workshop marked the inaugural event for the youth group and also for ‘The Syllogo Initiative’, an ongoing collaborative project with local Greek social clubs and associations that aims to capture South Australia’s Greek migration history and make cultural knowledge accessible across generations.
The event saw participants learn about the history of the Ikarian Hall from Dr Yianni Cartledge before making krousta (traditional pastry) following instruction from Chief Justice Kourakis and Ms Germanos.
During the workshop, they spoke about their memories of living with matriarch Irini Germanos and the Ikarian recipes she has documented in her cookbook ‘A Taste of Greek Life & Cooking’.
Kourakis remarked on the importance of initiatives like these in continuing to celebrate and share our diversity, noting in this case the significance of spreading knowledge of Ikaria.
“We all share a mission to maintain our culture which for most rural societies revolves around food. For Ellines food starts with flour, olive oil and the greens which cover the slopes and terraces of our mountainsides,” the SA Chief Justice said.
“So, making krousta and baking hortopita is a cultural and communal activity -a time to gossip, laugh and boast about whose [pita] is best.”
Germanos echoed this sentiment, saying that it is crucial to preserve our cultural identity.
“You have to know where your roots are. To know who you are, where you’re going. It is our community, our food, our heritage, our religion, our stories.”
“In Ikaria there is a strong sense of community. No one eats alone.”
George Gronthos, president of Pan-Ikarian Brotherhood of Australia, explained that initiatives such as these ensure our heritage (in all its dimensions) is passed on to future generations and allowed to live on.
“We are Australian-born and we are proud of that but we are also proud of our Greek heritage and what our ancestors did,” he said.
A Q&A session followed the workshop wherein the three aforementioned Kourakis, Germanos, and Gronthos each shared memories of celebrating past occasions at GOCSA’s Olympic hall, discussed the challenges community organisations are facing and spreading the important lessons and cultural heritage passed on from previous generations.
Gronthos stated that the redevelopment of the outdoor area of the Ikarian Hall is a step taken to encourage young people to go there.
Speaking on the event and the Syllogo Initiative more broadly, Anastasia Mavrides, Neoléa Committee Chair expressed the importance of syllogoi in fostering community and belonging and the necessity of promoting that further.
“With The Syllogo Initiative we want to shed light on the unique traditions of each association, encourage diversity and celebrate the common values and stories that bind us together as Greek Australians,” Mavrides said.
The next planned event as part of this initiative is scheduled for September as they look to build upon the foundation set by the cooking workshop.
