The 14th annual St George Community Awards had some Hellenic flavour to it with a number of Greek Australians recognised for their contributions to the area’s cultural and community life.
Over 90 individuals and groups were celebrated at the Awards, which were presented at the Mortdale RSL and Community Club in Sydney’s southern suburbs last Friday.
Among the many recipients for the awards was the Australian Hellenic Choir, with the group earning a Multicultural Communities Award.
Choir President James (Jim) Tsolakis expressed deep appreciation for the award win, feeling it validates the work they have done since their foundation.
“It is an honour but more importantly it is a recognition,” Tsolakis told Neos Kosmos.
“It is an amazing feeling. We have been at it for five-six years now and it is good to be acknowledged and rewarded and honoured like this.”
Tsolakis shared his joy in the progression of the choir, which has grown immensely and incorporated singers and audiences from non-Hellenic backgrounds.
“All these people work together as a team and we produce events which are attended by people from all sorts of backgrounds, not just Greeks. I believe that is an important part of what we do: trying to bring the community together,” the choir president said.
“The award represents to me the fact that our efforts in trying to bring the community together are actually working.”
Other Greek Australians recognised at the presentation included Maria Dalamaras, whose business Rio Consulting Group received a Business Achievement Award, Charoulla Themistocleous and Vasilios Aligiannis, each receiving an Individual Volunteer Achievement Award, as well as Michaela Loukas and Kosta Papoulidis, who earned Youth Achievement Awards.
The Hellenic Lyceum of Sydney was also celebrated, earning a Community Group Achievement Award.
