One Greek family over this Christmas weekend had more than the usual celebration, as their matriarch, Dionysia Vassiliadis turned 100 on Saturday December 23.
The special day was celebrated at one of her daughter’s house in Box Hill South, in what was a happy day for her and the family, with live music from a singer and bouzouki player.
Dionysia also received birthday cards and wishes from the Monarch: King Charles and Queen Camilla, Governor General of Australia David Hurley, Governor of Victoria Margaret Gardner, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Premiere of Victoria Jacinta Allan.
Dionysia, or Eunice is described by her daughter Anne as happy and healthy, enough so that at no point on Saturday did she want to have a break.
“It was a real special and happy day and at times we were trying to get her to have a break but she didn’t want to,” Anne tells Neos Kosmos.
She said Dionysia didn’t want to step away from conversations and leave people to their lonesome.
“The whole day her stamina was amazing, and she even got up and said goodbye to people.”
This energy can likely be attributed to her work ethic back in the day, helping run her family’s milk bar, looking after her younger siblings and then later her own store with her husband, while raising their kids.
Dionysia was born in Adelaide in 1923 to Greek migrants from Kastellorizo, Jacovis and Anastasia Bolkus, who came to Australia for a fresh start with their son Michael after losing their three daughters.
Michael was the father of former Labor Party and Senate member Nick Bolkus.
Dionysia was the oldest of three other daughters they had in Australia, followed by Chrissie and Reenie, and is the only remaining sibling.
Her parents ran a mixed business during World War II, giving out coupons, which Dionysia had to leave school to help run, when her mother became sick with cancer.
In 1949 she moved to Melbourne and married Egyptian born Basil Vassiliadis, whose parents were also from Kastellorizo.
They had three children, Irene, Douglas and Anne, and ran a café and then a mixed business, while Dionysia’s trade was dressmaking.
Anne recalls her mum was always working, coming home 7-8pm until 60-years-old, and when she wasn’t working she was gardening.
In her later years, and to this day, Dionysia has kept fit and healthy, without any medication at that.
She loved walking and walked every morning five days a week – up into her 90’s, and even more surprising, she still mowed the grass in her 90’s and only stopped as a neighbour questioned her and she was then too embarrassed to continue.
When her grandchildren were young – she used to do the monkey bars with them (she was in her 80’s at that time).
Now living in a home, Dionysia “mother nature hasn’t gone away” says Anne, as she’ll talk to everyone including carers, who all “love her because she’s funny.”
However, she does have some short-term memory loss now, and will forget that she conversed with people, but other than that Dionysia is still “bright and sparkly and has a happy and gentle nature.”
