THE BLUE AND WHITE

Brief History:

As Mr. Paschalidis famously said in an assembly prior, the word Hellene (in Hellenism) itself is derived from the mythological figure Hellen, who is considered the ancestor of the Hellenes or the Greeks. The English word “Greek” originates from the Latin term “Graeci,” which in turn comes from the Greek word “Graikoi” (Γραικοί). Throughout history Greeks/Hellenes have inhabited regions all across Europe, Asia, and Africa. From Crimea to Siciliy, the Anatolian Peninsula, all the way to northern Pakistan, Afghanistan, Egypt and as far west as France.

Recap:

It was another great March of celebrating Hellenic culture at the College. We had an amazing turnout this year of students, faculty, staff, parent volunteers and general community involvement.

Before the March Break, the HCC held a gyro sale inviting the entire student body to ditch their Aramark meals and to experience a taste of Greek cuisine. In collaboration with Souv-Like we raised money towards the school’s festival, and donated the rest to the Hellenic Home for the Elderly.

For the Panigyri (festival), there were various exciting new editions to this year’s celebration. The first and most apparent were the four club members that chose to wear the traditional Greek revolutionary outfit, called the uniform of a Tsolia. We were very greatful to have these donated to us for the day!

Capture here: Hunter de Abreu, John Karakoulas, John Mboutsiadis, and Michael Goddard

Our parent volunteers truly showed up this year, with the Kafenio (Café) being a huge hit. The queues were massive and the smiles were wide. There was a large selection of food and drink: frappe (cold Greek coffee), Lagana Bread (lentin bread) with feta and olive oil, as well as sweets from Serano Bakery on the Danforth.

Throughout the Panigyri we had music playing from our Bouzouki and Guitar players. Special shoutout to them for making the ambience truly Hellenic and for giving us an authentic Panigyri experience.

We also hosted multiple vendors from all types of industrys. Whether it was travel or jewellery we gave the UCC community the chance to purchase authentic traditional products and an education about the most important and unique parts of Hellenic culture. The faculty for Hellenic Studies at York University and the Hellenic Heritage Foundation both came with their own setups and educated our student body about some of our unknown history.

A special shoutout goes to our club advisor Mme Gauthier and the many parent volunetters who generously donated their time and efforts to our initiative. See you all next year!

Thanks,

Hellenic Culture Club 2025