The Bank of Sydney has celebrated in style to help mark six years of being part of the Bank of Beirut group.
A dinner was hosted at Le Montage last month, where special lifetime achievement awards were presented to various members of the community by the Chairman and CEO of Bank of Beirut, Dr Salim Sfeir.
Recipients included Dr Nicholas Pappas AM, Chairman of the Bank of Sydney; His Excellency Bishop Antoine-Charbel Tarabay OLM, Maronite Bishop for Australia; His Eminence Metropolitan Archbishop Paul Saliba, Primate of the Antiochian Orthodox Church of Australia and New Zealand; Sheikh Malek Zeidan, Representative of Dar-Al Fatwa in Australia; the Hon John Ajaka, MLC, President of NSW Legislative council; Mr George Bitar Ghanem, Consul General of Lebanon in Sydney; and Mr Anwar Harb AM, publisher and editor-in-chief of Annahar Newspaper Australia.
His Eminence Archbishop Stylianos Harkianakis, Primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in Australia also received a special lifetime achievement award, which was presented at a private gathering on Friday morning as he was unable to attend on the night.
Also present at the dinner were Bank of Sydney CEO Miltos Michaelas, board members from Sydney and Lebanon, religious leaders, politicians, community leaders, and 400 guests from the Greek, Lebanese, and Australian communities.
As well as celebrating the relationship between the two institutions, the event was also a chance to celebrate the timeless service and dedication of 12 of its employees who have been serving the bank and its customers for more than 15 years.
Dr Sfeir was also recognised for his leadership and support to the Australian and Lebanese friendship. He received a certificate of recognition and merit granted by the NSW Legislative Council at a ceremony at NSW Parliament House, with an award of appreciation for his achievements, especially to the Lebanese diaspora, from the World Lebanese Cultural Union of Australia and New Zealand.