A Child Sent Away for a Better Life Searches For
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O C V ΓΡΑΦΕΙ ΤΗΝ ΙΣΤΟΡΙΑ Bringing the news ΤΟΥ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΣΜΟΥ to generations of ΑΠΟ ΤΟ 1915 The National Herald Greek Americans A WEEKLY GREEK AMERICAN PUBLICATION c v www.thenationalherald.com VOL. 11, ISSUE 527 November 17, 2007 $1.00 GREECE: 1.75 EURO A Child Sent Away for a Papandreou Defeats Venizelos to Stay at the Helm Better Life Searches for PASOK at Crossroads Needs to Reinvent its Her Biological Parents Message in the Future By Theodore Kalmoukos a whole plane full of children. Four By Evan C. Lambrou Special to the National Herald of us landed in Houston, but there Special to The National Herald were others on the plane,” she said. BOSTON – She was just nine The arrangements to bring NEW YORK – After almost two months old aboard a KLM flight Pamela Wolf over were made by Fr. months of bitter and almost con- from Athens to San Antonio, Texas Spyridon Diavatis, who served at stant attack and counterattack, on July 10, 1958. Only her first Saint Sophia Greek Orthodox George Papandreou managed to name, Aspasia, was written on the parish during the 1950s in San An- hold onto the reins of his socialist traveling documents. Today she is tonio. party, and keep his family’s political known as Pamela Wolf. “He helped a lot of families dynasty alive, soundly defeating Two strangers were waiting for adopt children from Greece. I was what initially started as a stern her at the San Antonio airport, one of them,” Ms. Wolf said “There challenge to his leadership follow- Prosper Anthony Mika and Irene was an attorney in Athens by the ing his party’s stinging defeat in na- Mary Ledwing. These two Ameri- name Photios Bouras. Fr. Diavatis tional elections this past Septem- cans would be her parents. was a classmate of his in university ber. In a interview with the National and he trusted him.” Celebrating his victory, Mr. Pa- Herald, Ms. Wolf, now 50, said, “All Fr. Diavatis died six years ago. pandreou called for a “new nation- I know is that I was left at Metera Ms. Wolf had located and visited al strategy” based on environmen- Children’s Asylum. My name was him in her attempt to get to know tally conscious growth, fighting Aspasia and my birthday was Sep- more about her biological mother corruption and promoting the dig- tember 25, 1957. I must have been whom she never met, but Fr. Dia- nity of Greece’s citizens. left a few weeks old because when I vatis did not know much or he did- In the process, however, Mr. Pa- got to the United States I was only n’t want to shed light on the issue. pandreou’s rival for the socialist nine months old.” Little Aspasia (Pamela) was party’s helm, former Culture Minis- Ms. Wolf was not the only infant lucky because she fall into good ter Evangelos Venizelos – no rela- that traveled on the same flight hands. tion to the great Greek statesman, from Athens to the U.S. “There was “I had a very good childhood Eleftherios Venizelos – clearly here. My parents were very-very AP PHOTO emerged as a force within the Pan- loving and we were very close. My Saved from Rough Waters Hellenic Socialist Movement (PA- mother outlived my father by sev- SOK) founded by Mr. Papandreou’s WITH THIS ISSUE eral years so she became my best An immigrant couple with their kids react at the port of Katakolo in the western Peloponnese after the father, the late Andreas Papan- friend. She died February 4, 2003,” ship they were on was towed to safety by the coast guard on Sunday, November 11, 2007. Twelve children dreou, back in the 1970’s. she said. “These have been the who were among a group of 275 illegal migrants pulled from rough seas off the Greek coast on Sunday Four years and two election de- hardest four years of my life be- have been hospitalized with dehydration and hypothermia, according to government officials. feats into his leadership, Mr. Papan- cause I lost a parent once again. My dreou, a former foreign minister parents were telling me that the under Costas Simitis – who stepped first few months that I was here aside to let the PASOK founding were very difficult because I could- family’s scion take the reins in an n’t sit up. I was so weak that I attempt to stave off imminent de- couldn’t hold my head up. But Archdiocese to Settle Misconduct Cases feat in 2004 – convincingly beat when I was one year old they had Mr. Venizelos 56-34 percent and me walking. I wouldn’t even eat. I By Theodore Kalmoukos ley Adamakis, who was murdered ready defrocked, abused him when kept the Papandreou legacy alive guess I was not used to the food Special to The National Herald in 2003 by a person with whom he Mr. Rymer was an active priest. for the time being, but by capturing that they were cooking here, so my had a special relationship. Mr. The above cases have not been more than a third of PASOK’s elec- mother was struggling to find any- BOSTON - The Greek Orthodox Adamakis had pled guilty to reported to the general congrega- torate last Sunday, November 11, thing that I would eat.” Archdiocese is about to agree to an charges in 1990 that he had sexual- tion by the Archdiocese, neither the Mr. Venizelos has clearly emerged Ms. Wolf always felt the knowl- out-of-court settlement concerning ly molested two teenagers. members of the Holy Synod know as a force within the socialist par- edge that she was Greek in her two old cases of sexual misconduct The other case concerns Michael details about it. ty’s framework. heart. involving former priests – archi- Rymer, who is said to be suffering It is emphasized here that both The vote pitted Mr. Papandreou, “There was one time that my mandrites from California – ac- from a serious illness, and who cur- are old cases and they go back to 55, the son and grandson of prime parents had somewhere to go and cording to information obtained by rently lives as monk in a monastery Archbishop Iakovos era. Even the ministers, against the 50-year-old took me with them,” she explained. the National Herald. The cost for which belongs to the Orthodox late Archbishop Iakovos had given Mr. Venizelos, a canny senior so- “My mother told me there was a la- the settlement is expected to ex- Church in America (formerly the video testimony on the Adamakis cialist cadre. Costas Skandalidis, a dy there who was Greek and as ceed the sum of $2 million, plus le- Russian Orthodox Metropolia). A case because he had inspired the former PASOK chairman who gal fees of $300 thousand. Greek American alleged that Mr. Continued on page 3 One case concerns the late Stan- Rymer, who has already been al- Continued on page 4 Continued on page 4 Conflicts in Chicago’s Greek Alkinoos Ioannidis Sings with School Choir for Charity Community Stemmed from By Dimitri Soultogiannis Special to the National Herald Notions of Liturgical Time NEW YORK – Popular singer Alki- noos Ioannidis gave a concert at New York University’s Skirball Cen- By Steve Frangos 45 BC, Julius Caesar fixed the nor- ter for the Performing Arts on Fri- Special to The National Herald mal year to 365 days, and a leap day, November 9, 2007, playing his year, every fourth year at 366. Cae- part in the fundraising effort in sup- Considering Apostolos Makrakis’ sar added an extra month to the port of the cultural programs of the teachings and the actions of his fol- original ten-month Roman calen- Holy Trinity Cathedral School in lowers in Chicago is not some anti- dar, named after himself, Julius (Ju- Manhattan. quarian byway of Greek American ly), as well as setting the lengths of The Cypriot-born singer ex- history. For the vast majority of the months. His successor, Augus- pressed his satisfaction with the Greek immigrants of the 1880-1920 tus, renamed the Roman month music event held in collaboration wave of immigration, retaining Sextilis, Augustus August), after with the school choir which is made their language and culture in North himself. He also rearranged the up of children of different national- America was paramount. A complex number of days per month, giving ities that had the opportunity to mix of Old World politics, theology, them their present lengths. sing in Greek. canon law and individual personali- In “The Greeks in America “We gave the opportunity to our ties proved a volatile combination in (George H. Doran, page 126, New students to sing along with a pro- the early decades of Greek life in York: 1922),” Rev. J. Xenides, notes, fessional, well-known, singer,” said North America. To better under- “The Greek Church officially follows Lena Patouris, the school’s develop- stand the intentions of the Aposto- the Julian Calendar, which is 13 ment director. “And you know, not los Pavlos School on Chicago’s days behind the Gregorian Calen- many children have this opportuni- northwest side, we need to consider dar. Thus, Christmas is on the 25th ty nowadays.” something about Greek Orthodox of December, but 13 days later than Ms. Patouris praised Mr. Ioanni- notions of liturgical time. the American Christmas (i.e., Janu- dis’ work ethic and called him “a Time as well as geographic space ary 7th). New Year’s Day is January great artist and a wonderful human was of fundamental importance to Popular singer Alkinoos Ioannidis gave a concert on Friday, November 9, 2007 at New York University’s Greeks in North America.