Meeting With the Deputy Minister of Expatriate Greeks Antonis Diamataris

On Monday, August 26, 2019, during their vacation in Greece, HCGM President Annie Koutrakis and her spouse, Gerry Kolaitis, had the opportunity to meet with the new Deputy Minister of Expatriate Greeks Antonis Diamataris.

After having spent most of his life living and working in New York, an expatriate himself, the Minister is well-positioned to appreciate the breadth and accomplishments of our Community and to understand the challenges we face. Mr. Diamataris was born in Lemnos, Greece, and emigrated to New York at the age of 18. Before his return to Greece, he has been the publisher and editor of the historic Greek-American newspaper “Ethnikos Kyrix/National Herald for forty years.

The one-hour long meeting took place at Mr. Diamataris’ office in Athens. It was a very productive meeting where the HCGM President discussed with the Minister the objectives and the scope of the Community, issues important to us and what the new Greek Government can do to support the 70,000 Greeks of Montreal. At the end of their meeting, the Minister thanked HCGM President Annie Koutrakis and the Board of Directors for their dedication and commitment to Hellenism.

We see this meeting as an important first step in developing a strong working relationship with his department. We also look forward to an official visit by the Minister to Montreal in the near future to meet the «Παροικία» and to see the HCGM for himself. The HCGM would like to thank journalist-author Justine Frangouli for organizing the meeting and taking the time to attend and introduce our new President to her long-time colleague.