ASTORIA, NY – This year’s Saint Demetrios Prep School’s senior trip to Nassau Paradise Island in the Bahamas included a visit to the historic Greek Orthodox Church of the Annunciation in Nassau, the island country’s capital.
Students of the Class of 2023 and their chaperones were welcomed by Fr. Irinaios Cox who showed them not only the church but also its picturesque grounds which includes a community center and a small facility for Greek language learning.
The students were impressed by the iconography and the fact that the church was established in the 1930s by Greek immigrants from the Dodecanese Islands who left their homeland in search of opportunities for work, especially as sponge divers and sailors.
Today, the parish is the spiritual home to Greek – Bahamian families in Nassau and others who rely on the church as a place of faith. Of course, the Annunciation church also has many tourists who stop in while on their vacations- especially during the Epiphany on January 6, the feast day of the Annunciation on March 25, and every Easter. This past Easter (as has been done in other years) services were conducted during Holy Week followed by a festive dinner after the Resurrection.
Fr. Irinaios and the St. Demetrios students enjoyed speaking to each other and engaging in prayer. Now when the students visit on their own or with their families, they know that the beautiful Paradise Island also has a place of worship which will welcome them.
