At the age of 90, you’d expect Nick Vournazos to be enjoying the fruits of his labour, not donating millions.
The well-noted figure in Melbourne’s Greek community has selflessly donated $1.5 million to Fronditha Care to help a cause close to his and wife Anna’s heart.
The pair made the decision to donate the funds after they saw first hand from friends what it’s like to suffer from Multiple Sclerosis (MS).
“A friend of mine contracted the disease at 30, now at 40, she can’t walk,” Anna Vournazos tells Neos Kosmos.
“Her mother is 70-years-old and as a carer she struggles to lift her own daughter.
“There are a lot of kids sick from MS here in East Burwood and we wanted them to be close, so they don’t have to go far [for care].”
Anna and Nick felt that something needed to be done and decided to sell a block of flats they developed and owned to ensure people like their friend get the care they need but also take the burden off their families.
“We never had kids and we decided to give the money to the sick kids of the community,” Anna says.
“We donated it all as is from the sale.”
Philanthropy isn’t a new concept for the duo, but this time they chose to make sure the money went to a specific purpose.
“Philanthropy is a must, but it depends where you give the money and what gets done with it,” Nick tells Neos Kosmos.
“I didn’t want to give money for just one reason, I wanted to give money for that reason … to help people, young and old, with MS.”
Fronditha Care is expected to build a new residential wing at their Clayton South facility that will specialise in care for residents suffering from MS.
The money will also help Fronditha purchase specialised shower chairs, lifting machines and ergonomic beds with air-mattresses, but also take on new nursing care options for persons with MS.
Greek people with MS and who have an aged care client record will not be restricted by age and can be cared for by Fronditha Care.
The organisation will also look to tailoring new activity programs for people of all ages with MS.
President of Fronditha Care, Mike Zafiropoulos, says through this donation, Fronditha will be able to address the future needs of the community and praised Mr and Mrs Vournazos.
“This great act of generosity and philanthropy is testament to the long-serving commitment by Mr and Mrs Vournazos to serving the community,” he said.
Nick Vournazos devoted much of his life to serving the community in both Greece and Australia.
Born in 1924 in the town of Chrysanthio in the Peloponnese, Nick became a resistance fighter during the German occupation in Greece and was eventually honoured with a Medal of the Resistance 1941-1945 for his participation in the combat ranks of EAM- ELAS.
He later joined the left wing fight in the civil war to fight for freedom once more.
“I was never a fanatical left-winger, nor was I a fanatical right-winger,” he tells Neos Kosmos. “I wanted to see Greeks vote on their own.”
In 1955, Nick married Anna and a week later, the two were sailing to the shores of Melbourne.
As a milk bar owner and factory worker, Nick was always thinking of grandeur, of building his name into the community.
Anna remembers the jolt he felt when visiting the city.
“When we arrived, we went to Swanston Street together,” she says.
“He saw a big tall building and said, ‘I’ll build something like that one day’, and I got upset, thinking, my god, Nick’s lost his marbles.
“But, slowly and surely, he started building and selling, building and selling and one by one they added up and we started living a bit more comfortably.”
His passion and drive never waned, and at the ripe old age of 78, he finished his first university degree in arts.
“Learning always chased me, I had this mania to learn,” he says. It might have taken him nine years, but the journey always makes up for the time.
From his degree, Nick has gone on to write an autobiography entitled Dancing Solo and another six books.