More Progress On the NY Parade – But the Archbishop Should Clarify His Position On Our National Symbols…

PHOTO: Rendering of Saint Nicholas with Greek and American Flags

The preparations for the Parade are going ahead at full speed, but the Archbishop keeps acting weirdly. If Fr. Evagoras is part of the FEDERATION’s “Evzones Committee,” the invitation for the Evzones should be on the Federation’s letterhead, not the Archdiocese’s!! Also, if the Archbishop is so enamored with our national symbols, why not install two flagpoles at Saint Nicholas, as he had promised?

By Nick Stamatakis

Some more good news regarding the finances of this year’s Parade in NY was announced last Thursday at the regular meeting at Stathakion, but much more is needed; the “oldtimers” are hoping that the “late response” that plagues our behavior perennially is the main problem and that in the end the money will be collected…  Last Thursday, most committee members arrived late as they attended the celebration at the Consulate… Philip Christopher was somewhat upset with those “once-a-year-Greeks” who participated in the Consulate’s celebration but failed to support the Federation and the Parade even nominally…  But he later was happy to see that donations kept coming for all events:  Yiannis Stroumbakis gave a $10,000 check from ALMA Bank, Christos Vournas of the Arcadians delivered a few checks for all events and purposes, Peter Gerasounis delivered “Panchiaki Korais’s” generous contribution, Mrs. Eleni Psarra, among others, made pledges and other committees announced progress. Among other events, here is what is being planned:

• Tomorrow Sunday, there will be an event at Athens Square in Astoria at 2 pm and a speech at Stathakion at 4pm commemorating the role of the Philhellenes.
• A special event this coming Thursday evening at the Archangel Michael Church at Port Washington where Peter Gerasounis will commemorate the Massacre of Chios.
• Next, Panomogeniaki will be at Fr. Evagoras’ Church, Sts Constantine and Helen in Brooklyn this Thursday evening. Hopefully, Fr. Evagoras will provide some answers on the national symbols issue we have posed here.
• A Radiothon at Hellas-FM will aim at raising funds for the Parade (April 3, 5-9 pm).
• There will be a meeting in New Jersey in April, which is an excellent idea for apparent reasons…

The problems caused by Yiannis Koutalis

Philip Christopher was troubled with the problems created at the Federation by Yiannis Koutalis: “Who is this guy? Who brought him here?” he asked… Helleniscope has been writing about Yiannis Koutalis for about two years, exposing his rude, despicable, unlawful behavior… No other news medium dare reveal this thuggish character, who has hijacked the Federation’s website and FB page... (Enter his name in our search button to see at least 6-7 references).

PHOTO: Here is Yiannis Koytalis, acting like the thug that he is…

We have been writing and writing, but the minuscule “leaders” (emphasis on the questions marks – some still pretend they can “lead” the Federation) on both sides could not do anything about him… Yes, the “sidewalk side brought him and specifically Timoleon Kakouros, “the guy with a Hitlerian mustache”… Kakouros supported him, along with others, who helped him have access to Stathakeion, where he made a lot of “business” and money. And they did it while they knew that Koutalis was illegal in this country. Is anyone now man enough and sensible to have a lawyer write a letter to him threatening a lawsuit?  Yes, he was included in the previous legal case – but this is not enough. A separate legal warning has to be sent to him and the Immigration and Naturalization Service must be informed if he fails to return what he has stolen.  As for my fellow journalists, what can I say? If you avoid writing about such an apparent problematic character, what will you do about the more significant problems?

PHOTO: Koutalis (right) with his “mentor” Kakouros, the one with the “Hitlerian” moustache…(Both photos posted in this segment are credited to Anamniseis.net and are about 12-18 months old…)

Yes, Koutalis was on the “sidewalk side” – let’s not forget that his “mentor” Kakouros was elected president of this “sidewalk side”…  Late Galatoulas was promoting Kakouros (known for his …”presidential” aspirations), hoping to retain control of the Federation through him… Hopefully, the two sides will try to force Koutalis to do the right thing. The responsibility falls on the “sidewalk side” mostly.  Will they accept this thug – who they nurtured – to blackmail the Federation?  We also hope that the two sides will find a way to cooperate toward an election in June by forming the necessary Constitution Committee and Registration Committee in the next 10-15 days.  The Committees – especially the Constitution Committee – can start work in the background to save some time.

After the Court’s Decision last week (You can see it here FEDERATION – COURT ORDER – MARCH 22, 2023), I do not need to hear any more hallucinations from the “sidewalk side” that “soon we will have keys to the Stathatkion”.  I have been hearing this for months. You guys will never get the keys to Stathakion if you act like thugs… You have one choice and one choice only: to expel from your midst anyone who is dreaming of becoming the “new Galatoulas”  and start cooperating towards the elections.

Finally: The Archbishop Should Clarify His Position On Our National Symbols

And he needs to do it as soon as possible.  Father Evagoras (Konstantinides) is his representative at the Federation for the Parade and has been acting weirdly.  Over the years, we have observed other “Archbishop’s Representatives” at the Federation over the years, but none got actively involved in ANY Committee. They had a more significant role than that, coordinating the Archdiocese’s participation in the Parade, especially the Parishes and Schools – which is the bulk of the Parade anyway.

Father Evagoras chose to join the “Evzones Committee,” despite our repeated calls that “Evzones and Priests don’t mix well,” even esthetically. He knew better… Was it his plan to hijack the Evzone’s participation from the Federation and make it an Archdiocese’s task?  Instead of sending an invitation for the Evzones to the President of Greece on the Federation letterhead, he sent it on the GOARCH letterhead.  Fr. Evagoras needs to make a public statement clarifying that this was not his intention and that this is the last time the Archdiocese is involved in their invitation. If he fails, the Federation should send the President of Greece a letter explaining the situation.  I do not think the Archbishop would like to cause one more messy problem…  Whatever the end of this story, the Federation should make a public statement that from this time on, the invitation to the Evzones will be done exclusively by the Federation.   

And finally, the Archbishop himself needs to clarify his position on our national symbols: If he is so enamored with our national symbols, why not install two flagpoles at Saint Nicholas, as he had promised? Does he plan to accept the Evzones in Saint Nicholas but refuse to have a Greek and an American Flag outside the Church?  He had promised to do so, and we recorded his promise (Please link here) after a visit by the Hellenic American National Council in May 2021. We are waiting for His Eminence to answer…

On A Positive Note: The Flag was raised yesterday at Bowling Green for the 25th of March…

Yes, some in our community do not play politics but offer all their ideas and energies for the common good.  One of them is Theodore Pavlakos, president of the Panlaconian Federation of the U.S.A. and Canada, helped by Mr. Art Piccolo of the Bowling Green Association and Ms. Georgia Gotzamanis raised the Flag at Bowling Green, to honor the 25th of March.

Mr. Pavlakos was the one who initiated the proposal for the installation of the second flag pole at Bowling Green, organized the whole project, and raised the money at a remarkable event at the “Crystal Palace” to complete the project in 1996.  And he has been present every year ever since…  A similar event in Chicago at the Richard Daley Plaza was initiated twenty-eight years ago by the now president of the Hellenic American National Council (HANC), Mr. Bill Mataragas.

March 25, 2023, n.stamatakis@aol.com www.helleniscope.com

DISCLAIMER: The views and statements expressed in this article constitute constitutionally protected opinions of this author.