A Publication of the ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN LAITY
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| Volume 6 Number 38 - Tuesday, September 21st, 2004 |
A Publication of the ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN LAITY |
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The Orthodox Christian News Service |
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Parent Efforts Keep Lowell School Afloat
BOSTON.- It all started just over four years ago when the Hellenic-American School of the Holy Trinity of Lowell, the only Day School in the entire New England Region since 1908, found itself in financial straits. Something very concrete and practical had to be done. A group of parents whose children attended the school decided to establish a permanent Endowment Fund. Donna Christopoulos, a mother with three children attending the Hellenic-American School remembered recently in an interview with The National Herald that “The Fund was established in the year 2000 in order to reduce the deficit of the school at that time and to help the school maintain academic excellence in the future.” The endeavor was embraced by many and today Donna Christopoulos, a trustee of the Fund, said the school is half way through its goal this year. “Our goal is one million dollars by the school’s 100-year anniversary in 2008,” she said. Currently, we have $350,000 in our trust account and $200,000 in outstanding pledges,” Christopoulos said. Speaking about the pledges, Christopoulos explained that, “In the year 2000 George Behrakis pledged $100,000 and in 2001 he pledged to match another $100,000.” It is anticipated that Behrakis, the well known philanthropist and great benefactor of Holy Trinity and its parochial school will soon fulfill his pledge, helping the Fund to reach one half million dollars. After all, the Holy Trinity School is George Behraki’s Alma mater, and one of its most prominent aluminums. He is currently in the process of constructing a new playground for the children at the school. Christopoulos is more than certain that the goal of one million dollars will be reached. She speaks with such conviction: “We are going to reach our goal, it is reachable and we are going to be more aggressive the next four years as far as raising the money. We are hoping for more corporate donations, we are going to get our name out there,” she said. Karin Arsenault agreed with Christopoulos and gave practical insights: “We are trying to design a pamphlet that specifically speaks sbout the endowment and what the purpose of the endowment is. We are going to reach out to the former alumni of the school and let them know where we are today and what our goals are for the future of the school.” Counting on the alumni support, Christopoulos said, “It is important that they know what our mission is and what our goals are and it is important that the alumni realize that this is where they all got their foundation and they really should be supporting us.” The Foundation’s money will be placed in a trust account and the interest will support the school. The Demoulas Foundation has given $50,000 and the school anticipates that they will be donating more. The school’s principal, James Demos, said, “The Demoulas Foundation has already funded the computer program this year, and they paid the fee for the instructor.” This year enrollment has increased dramatically to 139 students from 123 last year and from just 85 students five years ago. “We need more space,” the principal said. “The word got out that this is a very good school,” said Arsenault. “We did more marketing. We tried to approach more news outlets and get the school on the map. In the past, you did not know that this is a good school unless you were affiliated with it.” They all believe that the government of Greece should help support the school financially. Principle James Demos said that Greece should be reminded that: “this is the only Greek-American School in the Northeastern part of the United States and it does keep the Greek tradition, the Greek language. When the children leave here in sixth grade, they speak Greek fluently. We have various Greek celebrations: Greek Letters Day, Greek Independence Day—they say all their speeches in Greek, they do their Greek dances. It is the only school that offers that.” Julie Gryllakis emphasized that “This is the first school in the entire United States that was set up to perpetuate the Hellenic Culture.” In the last few years, the children of prominent scientists who are sent to the U.S. by the Greek government to be trained in universities and advanced learning centers in the greater Boston area attended the Hellenic-American School. “If Greece supports us financially, we can expand our space. We have the grounds but we need the funding to build those facilities,” said Gryllakis. The time is approaching for the establishment of the seventh and eighth grades, she added. “What is happening now is that our children are educated here in the Greek language and in the culture, but in the seventh and eighth grades they need to go to another school, and there is no continuity for these children in this culture,” said Arsenault. Arsenault’s testimony is a tribute to the quality of education at the school: “I am not of Greek descent, neither is my husband. We have researched all the schools in this area and this is really the only school that has a strong academic foundation and I believe that the Greek language is just an asset.” “It helps you with the foundation in our sciences,” she explained. “I am in the medical field [a dentist] and a lot of words come from the Greek language. Any child that is exposed to the Greek language and culture can only benefit from it.” Gryllakis calls the school “a true gem.” “One of the things that I love about the school the most is how the children learn the Greek culture.” On Friday, September 24, the Endowment Committee is organizing a dinner dance at the Tewksbury Country Club in honor of George Behrakis and his family. More than 300 guests are expected to participate. “We are honoring Mr. Behrakis and the Behrakis Foundation for their lifetime dedication to the Hellenic-American School,” said Christopoulos.
“We believe that
they have gone above and beyond the call of duty
and their thoughtfulness and generosity is just
wonderful,” she added. |
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