The Greek Community of Melbourne Schools hosted an evening full of music, dance and culture at their annual dinner dance, held last Friday at the Vogue Ballroom. For the second consecutive year, students, teachers, and parents gathered for a vibrant celebration that highlighted the strength, unity, and cultural pride of the GCM school community with the graduating students bidding a heartfelt farewell to their teachers and classmates.

The event, accompanied by live music from the Rhythmos Band, saw the ballroom filled with guests enjoying hours of traditional Greek music and dancing.

Among the distinguished guests were Joseph Lo Bianco, Professor of Language and Literacy Education at Melbourne University and author of the Pharos Report on revitalising the Greek language; Nildhara Gadani, candidate for Mahoneys Ward; Maria Triantafyllou, Acting Coordinator of Greek Educational Affairs; and Despina Saranti, President of the Modern Greek Teachers’ Association of Victoria. Board members of the Greek Community of Melbourne.

Nick Koukouvitakis, Secretary, Marinis Pirpiris, Treasurer, and other esteemed figures from the Education Committee, also attended.

GCM Principal Maria Bakalidou expressed her gratitude to the school community, emphasizing the importance of preserving Greek culture and language. “It is a great pleasure to see so many young people dancing and enjoying Greek music,” she said.

“Our goal is to strengthen the bonds within this wonderful, large family and to create lasting experiences that reinforce the cultural and linguistic identity of our students.”