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A Message from the President – September 2015

Pagonis-2015-01Dear friends,

The beginning of the new school year is a very special moment for all of us at the Community.  Our students, the future representatives of the Hellenic spirit in Montreal, are back in school, ready for their next adventurous journey of knowledge.  It is my pleasure to extend a warm and heartfelt welcome to all students and families as we begin the 2015-2016 school year at “École Socrates-Démosthène”, our trilingual elementary school, and the Supplementary Education Saturday schools, “Platon-Omeros”, “Aristotelis” and “Saint Nicholas”.  We are proud of our experienced teachers and feel blessed to have the new generation of Hellenes in our classrooms.

We usually take education for granted, and then again we realise it remains an inaccessible right for millions of children around the globe.  The HCGM makes considerable efforts to ensure that our schools are attended by the largest number of students possible, so as to offer them the opportunity to become the ambassadors who will promote and preserve the Hellenic spirit, and therefore ensure the future of our community.   With this in mind, and highly sensitised to the financial issues faced by some of our fellow citizens, we created the new “Right to Knowledge” bursary programme, and invite all associations, organisations, and entrepreneurs to support this noteworthy effort.  It is our obligation to offer the necessary tools to our children, to see them excel and become successful professionals and valued members of our society.

In closing, I am pleased to inform you that this year’s “Panigiri Evangelismos” was a huge success.  Hundreds of visitors of all ages, Greeks and not, had a great time.  Amazing dance groups, delicious food and endless Greek «κέφι» were the key ingredients of this memorable event.  I express my appreciation to our volunteers, our staff and to all of those who helped make it a great Greek party.

Sincerely,

Nicholas T. Pagonis
President