A Message from the President – January 2017

Dear friends,

Οn behalf of the members of the Board of Directors, the employees, the volunteers of the HCGM and myself, I wish each and every one of you happiness, health, joy and love for the New Year.

During the last week of December, I had the privilege of meeting Ioannis Melissanidis, the Greek Olympic Gold Medallist in gymnastics, whose contribution to the Olympic heritage is remarkable. We are planning Ioannis’ next visit to Montreal, for him to meet our students and the community at large.

The second edition of ΣΩΚondaire, the “Socrates-Démosthène” High School students’ magazine, is in circulation. Our students explored various subjects such as, religion, fashion, sports etc, with great success. I encourage them to continue the great job and I congratulate their efforts.

Recently, a documentary on the Greek Islands was made by “Les Grands Explorateurs”, a documentary production company, and hits the screens in February. We are pleased to present you with a trailer in this month’s newsletter, and encourage you to support this project which promotes our Motherland.

On Christmas Day, we celebrated with the members of our community at our annual President’s Christmas Luncheon. I would like to thank all the volunteers and the members of the Board of Directors, for their selfless contributions,in making this a memorable event.

Once again this year, the Laval Regional New Year’s Eve Reveillon, took place at Holy Cross Church. Members of our Community had the opportunity to welcome in the New Year together, in our Greek customary tradition.

While on the topic of tradition, do not miss the annual “Taste & Tradition” event, which will take place, for the fourth consecutive year, on January 29th. This initiative is a combined effort between numerous Montreal Greek Ethnic Cultural Associations and the HCGM’s Fundraising Committee, whose unity works for the benefit of our schools and its students.

Finally, it is impossible to not recognise the remarkable effort of our Social Services Department. This year’s Christmas Campaign was an absolute success, as more than 100 Christmas baskets were delivered to families in need. I wish to congratulate all the employees and volunteers of HSSQ, and thank all of you who pledged your donation for the benefit of the less fortunate.

Happy New Year to all of you

Sincerely,

Nicholas T. Pagonis
President