NEW YORK, NY – GreekNews USA
In honor of the 88th anniversary of the passing of the Great Statesman Eleftherios Venizelos, the Venizelos Foundation USA along with nineteen Greek organizations held a memorial service at St. Eleftherios’ Greek Orthodox Church in New York City on March 17, 2024.
President of the Venizelos Foundation USA and the General Supervisor of Pancretan Association of America Nickos Kastrinakis welcomed and thanked the Very Reverend Archimandrite Nektarios Papazafiropoulos who joined Rev. Dr. Protopresbyter Nicolas Kazarian to conduct the memorial.
Also in attendance were the President of the Pancretan Association of America Diane Kounalakis, and the Vice President of the Cyprus Federation Nikos Pafitis.
“I am very grateful that we are in this parish paying tribute to Eleftherios Venizelos. We stand in the very same place where 88 years ago the Greek American Associations of New York honored Venizelos, and where the “Promise” was made that led to the establishment of the Venizelion Hospital in Crete”, Mr. Kastrinakis, mentioned.
St. Eleftherios held a very significant event in memory upon the death of Venizelos.
In March of 1936, the Cretans Association of New York Omonoia performed a funeral in honor of Venizelos, placing an empty casket with a photo of the Cretan Ethnarch on top of it, surrounded by banners from Greek organizations throughout New York City. It is the only church in the United States dedicated to St. Eleftherios.
The memorial in NYC on Sunday also has another significance for the Cretan Chapters and the Church.
Eleftherios Venizelos was named Honorary President of only three known organizations in the US when they were founded, the Pancretan Association of America; the Omonoia Cretan Chapter of New York and the St. Eleftherios Greek Orthodox Church.
To learn more about the Venizelos Foundation USA go to www.venizelosusa.org
The 19 Greek – American Organizations represented are: Pancretan Association of America, Cretans’ Association Omonoia of New York, Cretans’ Women Association “Pasiphae” of New York, Cretan Youth Association “Labrys” of New York, “Minos” Cretan Chapter of New York, “Erotokritos – Aretousa” Cretan Chapter of Long Island, NY Cretan Brotherhood of New York, Brooklyn Cretan Sisterhood of New York, Kritiki Filoxenia Cretan Chapter of Staten Island, Cyprus Federation, Pan Macedonian Association of America, Kastorian Society “Omonoia” of New York, Kostarazinon Society of New York, Pontion Society “Komninoi” of New York, Federation of Sterea Ellada, “Pyrrhus” Benevolent Society & “Daughters of Epirus”, New York Societies of Epirus “Anagennisis” and “Souliotises”, Aesculapian Thessalian Brotherhood of New York and the St. Eleftherios Parish Council.
