Logo
Prev
search
Print
addthis
Rotate
Help
Next
Contents
All Pages
Browse Issues
Buy This Issue
Select edition
Monday
Thursday
Saturday
Home
'
The Weekend Neos Kosmos : 25 October 2014
Contents
SATURDAY 25 OCTOBER 2014 5 AUSTRALIA SINGLE 33 year old Greek man. Only son very intelligent, tall, good- looking,very sad because he's not finding a young lady for friendship & eventual marriage. He will accept lady with small disability. Confidential. SINGLE Young Greek men in 40's with Uni degrees & good established jobs are seeking young ladies for friend- ship & eventual marriage. All confi- dential. There is a small fee. Call Maria 0402 421 156 Matchmaker For the third year in a row Con's Peddlers, one of thou- sands of groups, will take part in the Ride to Conquer Cancer this weekend. The charity event that raises money for the Peter MacCa- llum Cancer Centre aims to raise awareness of the dis- ease and to ultimately fund research to find a cure. The group holds the charity event very dear to their hearts, named after team manager Helen Galileos' koumbaro, Con Gantzos, who lost his battle to cancer just over a year ago. Ms Galileos' two children, Stephanie and Daniel, a can- cer survivor himself, are a part of the group riding this week- end and she is very proud of the team's efforts. "It is very close to my heart. When I look at my son and think about the fact that he's training, riding 200km, it makes me proud," Ms Galile- os told Neos Kosmos. "But at the same time I do feel sad that we lost our koumba- ro and that he left behind two young children ... we're leaving a legacy for those kids." This year the team has grown from 12 to 18 riders, having recruited more family and friends to take part. Partici- pants are expected to ride 200km over two days, com- mencing in Albert Park and making their way to Morn- ington Peninsula. There, rid- ers will camp overnight, start- ing up again in the morning for the ride back. Over the past three years, Ms Galileos' son and the team’s captain, Daniel, has been a part of raising up to $100,000. The group also held a fun- draiser in August this year at the Vogue Ballroom. The first fundraiser of its kind for the group, the night saw 300 people attend and secured just short of an impressive $20,000. "I know first-hand where the money goes because that's where my son was treated - at the Peter Mac," she says. "We want to find a cure for this horrible creature of a disease." Daniel has achieved the ti- tle of gold ambassador two years in row for his efforts in raising money for the charity, a great honour for the rider himself and the group. To take part in the ride each participant must raise a minimum of $2,500. Con's Peddlers have already beat- en their required $45,000 - the current funds standing at $47,000, just shy of the team's $50,000 target. The Ride for a Cure will take place this week on Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th Octo- ber. For more information and to donate visit www.conquer- cancer.org.au/ Con’s Peddlers on the road again Con’s Peddlers donning their finest at the Vogue Ballroom for their fundraiser in August this year. Cycling group Con’s Peddlers are getting their bicycles back on the road once again this weekend, taking part in the Ride to Conquer Cancer ANASTASIA TSIRTSAKIS One hundred years ago, be- fore the influx of Greek mi- grants touched down at Prin- cess Pier in Melbourne, thou- sands of Australian families gathered to farewell their male family members mak- ing the trip up north to help the Allied forces. Thousands of Australian men would have said their last goodbyes at the pier be- fore they settled at the base in Lemnos, Greece, before the tragic voyage to Gallipoli. Princess Pier was where the first Australian contin- gent of troops set off to the Great War, and it was where hundreds gathered 100 years later to mark the moment and remember those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for their country. At an Anzac Centenary com- memorative ceremony at the pier on Sunday, Greek Aus- tralians joined the crowd to pay their own respects and share the Greek connection to a huge part of Australian history. The Lemnian connection was represented in a stall set up by the Lemnos Gallipoli Commemorative Committee (LGCC), where passersby were able to see photos of nurses and other personnel on the is- land and get a small history lesson on the lesser-known Greek connection. Christina Despoteris, exec- utive member of the LGCC, says the stall was packed with people keen to find out more about Greece's connection. "There were lots of people - lots of interest," Ms Despot- eris tells Neos Kosmos. "We had pictures of nurses on the island, we had pictures of the hospital there, pictures of soldiers, and they came and had a look at those." For Ms Despoteris, the day marked the start of the com- memorative period, that will span four years just as the war did. For many who saw their loved ones off at Princess Pier in 1914, they were blissfully unaware of how long the war would span and how bloody it would eventually become. The island of Lemnos still holds a special place in Aus- tralian history. More than 100 Australian soldiers are buried there, while some of the first Greek migrants to travel to Australia were in fact Lem- nians. "Lemnos is slowly becoming acknowledged as part of the history of Gallipoli. Our role is to encourage and to make sure that more and more peo- ple know of it," Ms Despot- eris says. Each of the 17 ships of the first convoy farewelled at Princess Pier had its own stall at the event, giving crowds the chance to learn of the soldiers who were on board and their fate. For the LGCC, the event was a chance to fundraise and garner interest in the forth- coming statue, to be erected midnext year. The group sold out of their fundraising badges, raising more than $600 for the stat- ue. Commissioned by sculptor Peter Corlette, the bronze statue depicts two figures, one a nurse standing tall, looking after a seated soldier. The statue will be erected at Albert Park, linking it to the nearby Princess Pier legacy. The committee is also or- ganising a photographic exhi- bition, displaying a myriad of photos from the island during the war, with the hopes it will tour the country during the centenary commemorations. For more information, and to donate to the statue, visit lemnosgallipolicc.blogspot. com.au Princess Pier’s WWI connection remembered L-R: Jim Claven; Ken Volaris; Christina Despoteris; Ted Baillieu; Nick Kydas. Thousands of Australian soldiers left from Princess Pier to go fight in WWI 100 years ago. Their Lemnian connection was remembered last week in a stall at a commemorative ceremony at the pier HELEN VELISSARIS Former politician Kon Vatska- lis, who retired this year, has been recommended for the ti- tle 'Honourable' following his service to Australia. After immigrating in 1983, Vatskalis served in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and subsequently in the Northern Territory parlia- ment for 11 years. On his Facebook page, he said it was a proud achieve- ment for any Greek immi- grant. "An honour and a proud mo- ment not only for me but for all the people who support- ed me and instilled in me the drive to achieve, starting from my parents and all the people in my life back in my motherland and here in my new country. Thank you all." He thanked Australia for giving him the opportunities it has given him, like educa- tion, a career, his family and the chance to serve in public office. Honourary citizen Former RAAF officer and parliamentarian receives recommendation for serving his adopted country Kypreos fails to win Vatskalis seat Labor candidate Lauren Moss won the Northern Territory's Casuarina by- election, despite a swing to the Country Liberal Par- ty (CLP). She thanked family and staff as well as Labor's long-serving member for Casuarina Kon Vatskalis, whose resignation an- nouncement in July trig- gered the by-election. The CLP, represented by Greek Australian candi- date Dr Harry Kypreos, improved its first prefer- ences vote by less than one per cent. Dr Kypreos was a mem- ber of the local Greek com- munity, a group that has a strong presence in Casu- arina.
Links
Archive
18 October 2014
1 November 2014
Navigation
Previous Page
Next Page
