In under a month and a half, a dream that has encompassed the biggest community of Greeks of the diaspora, the Greeks of Melbourne, will become a reality. The Greek Centre for Contemporary Culture, in the heart of Lonsdale Street, will finally stand tall as the beacon for Hellenism in Melbourne. To date, the Greek Community of Melbourne (GCM) has raised over $10 million but still needs funds to promote ongoing cultural and educational programs to the community and the wider Australian public.
“As part of finalising this project, we think engagement with the community on a long term basis is necessary,” says GCM president Bill Papastergiadis.
He says one way of doing so – in having a sense of ownership to the project – is through financial contribution. Even though he says “it’s a substantial contribution”, Mr Papastergiadis adds that “it’s tax deductible”.
“There is no doubt it’s an ambitious project on a number of levels, and the project is now complete, hence that ambition has been realised, but clearly we need to reduce the level of debt so we can properly provide the services which are cultural and educational to the standard required,” Mr Papastergiadis tells Neos Kosmos.
On Tuesday night, the GCM have organised the first ever event where potential foundation benefactors will be able to attend and see just where their philanthropy will be spent and how they will assist in building a solid future for the community through the endeavours of the centre.
“We organised the event in the building so the foundation benefactors can get a feel of the space, the building, what’s likely to be in there – we are no longer selling a dream, it’s now a reality that we want them to invest in,” says Mr Papastergiadis.
One of the benefits of becoming a benefactor is to have your name on the benefactors board that Mr Papastergiadis says he hopes to be there presented in the building “for the next 20 years like the 56 benefactors in 1897 still are with us and we know who they are”.
“I think it’s important time records key moments, and this is one of those key moments and we are going to record those involved.”
As well as this, a number of benefits are included for those who donate to the program including a dedicated listing in the book about the history of the GCM; life membership to the Greek Community of Melbourne and acknowledgement in the GCM’s annual report among many others.
“The history of the Greek community is one of benefactors because they all played a role in the set up of their own organisation and it’s a continuation of that history. If you go to the smaller community groups they all have a board in each of their function centres that acknowledges the original benefactors,” he says adding that philanthropy is at the core of the Greek community and has always been.
So far, nearly the whole of the Board of Management of the GCM have donated $5000 each – including the two co-chairs of the centre Nikos Papastergiadis and Olyvia Nikou – with Mr Papastergiadis, Marinis Pirpiris and Nick Koukouvitakis donating $50,000 each. He says that fundraising will be an ongoing component of the programs that run at the centre.
“[The benefactors] contribution is one which eradicates the debt and which enables the community to offer the appropriate services on education and culture and that’s an important contribution,” says Mr Papastergiadis.
Key note speakers at the event include Ange Postecoglou, socceroos coach and Andrew Demetriou, AFL CEO.