The Archangel Michael

Transcription

1 Trumpet The Archangel Michael INSIDE THIS ISSUE Nov Dec 2014 Issue 21 Archangel Michael Church Port Washington, NY 2 Mission & Vision Statements 3 Father Nikolas Message 4 Worship Services & Sacraments 4 Stewardship Update 4 Philoptochos 5 Greek School Board 5 Greek School PTA 6 Sunday School 6 Preschool 6 Byzantine Youth Choir 7 Greek Dance Troupe 7 Youth Ministries 8 Athletics 8 Fellowship Events 8 Challenge Liturgy 9 Flagship Family Ministry Parish 10 Hellenos House 11 Community Photos 14 Calendars QUICK NEWS & EVENTS Sun., Nov. 2nd General Assembly Fri., Nov. 7th: Archangel Michael Vespers Sat., Nov. 8th: Synaxis of the Archangels Nameday Dinner Dance Mon., Dec. 1st: Parish Council Nominations Close Sun., Dec 7th: Philoptochos Christmas Luncheon Sat., Dec. 13th: Challenge Liturgy & Christmas Party Sun., Dec. 14th: Parish Council Elections Sun., Dec. 21st: Sunday School Christmas Pageant Tues., Dec. 23rd: Greek School Christmas Program Wed., Dec. 31st: New Year s Eve Celebration November 8th: Synaxis of the Archangels Apolytikion in the Fourth Tone O Commanders of the Heavenly Host, we the unworthy beseech you, that through your entreaties you will fortify us, guarding us in the shelter of the wings of your ethereal glory, even as we fervently bow before you crying: Deliver us from all danger, as Commanders of the Powers on high!

2 Trumpet The Archangel Michael About the Parish Archangel Michael Greek Orthodox Church 100 Fairway Drive Port Washington, New York Phone: Fax: Website: ArchangelMichaelChurch.org Archangel Michael Church is a parish of the Direct Archdiocesan District and Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America ( under the spiritual jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. Clergy Father Dennis Strouzas, Protopresbyter Father Nikolas Karloutsos Chanter: Andreas Modenos Office Staff Dora Gouramanis, Sandra Anagnostos, Catherine Papagianakis Parish Council Members Executive Board President: Michael Cavounis 1st Vice President: Nicholas Rallis 2nd Vice President: Michael Psyllos Treasurer: Chris Neocleous 1st Assistant Treasurer: James Sfiroudis 2nd Assistant Treasurer: John Halkias Secretary: Nicholas Kokinakis Tammy Ashley, Michael Bapis, Dean Chiros, Dimitri Dellis, Tommy Dimopoulos, Greg Giannakopoulos, George Kaparos, Adam Karras, Michael Kavourias, Stan Neamonitis, Nicholas Papain, Dominick Petruccelli, Constantine Rogdakis, Demetrios Ziozis About the Trumpet The Trumpet is the newsletter of Archangel Michael Greek Orthodox Church. Production 2014 Parish Council President: Michael Cavounis Editors: Barbara Mavro, Eleni Sfiroudis Calendar Editors: Dora Gouramanis, Sandra Anagnostos Copy Editors: Penny Stefanakis, Stella Tsimisiris Advertising: Greg Giannakopoulos Direct inquiries to: info@archangelmichaelchurch.org The Trumpet welcomes news and events from our community and organizations! Please submit information as follows: Articles: trumpet@archangelmichaelchurch.org Advertising information and sales: trumpet@archangelmichaelchurch.org Calendar events: info@archangelmichaelchurch.org November/December Worship Schedule Sunday Services: 8:30am Matins, m Liturgy The Archangel Michael Greek Orthodox Church is dedicated to the continuation of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ s ministry of salvation through the proclamation and teaching of the Gospel. We are a community of individuals and families who share the traditions and ageless beliefs of our Holy Orthodox Christian Faith. Vision Statement Mission Statement Our vision is to provide a loving, caring and welcoming environment where all belong and grow in the faith through worship, service, witness and fellowship. 2 Archangel Michael Nov/Dec

3 Pastoral Message from Father Nikolas What shall we offer You, O Christ?......who for our sake has appeared on earth as man? Every creature made by You offers You thanks. The angels offer You a hymn; the heavens a star; the Magi, gifts; shepherds, their wonder; the earth, its cave; the wilderness, the manger: and we offer You a Virgin Mother. (hymn from Vespers of Nativity) Like so many other hymns from the Christmas season, the above poetry--and indeed the entire liturgical and iconographical way in which the Orthodox Church expresses the mystery of the Incarnation--gives us so much to reflect on, some 2,000 years after the theological truth and historical birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. When we take a few steps back from the wrapping paper, holiday parties, and decorations, we are more likely to see and experience Christmas for what it ought to be, i.e. a celebration of God meeting us where we are, wherever that may be both literally and metaphorically. Moreover, we simultaneously extol the qualities exhibited by a mother in relationship to her child and emphasize the holiness that is made perfect in the meekness of a child. The question for us to ask ourselves is the following: where and how will we be found when the Creator arrives to meet His creation? Put another way, when God Himself comes helplessly into the world as the Christ Child to help us, how will we have prepared ourselves to greet Him and what will we offer Him? As we learn year after year from our participation in the Resurrection Feast, despite our shortcomings in properly preparing by prayer, fasting and charity, and as the hymn proclaims, God has us covered. The Virgin Mother offers her humanity to Christ on behalf of all human beings! in the way that mothers do, the humanity offered by the Virgin Mother would have no doubt included an offering to Christ of constant nourishment, clothing, prayers, care, protection, attention, instruction, and love. If we truly desire to live up to our Christian identity, to ultimately enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, we can look to the Virgin Mother and to Christ Himself for guidance. Consider that our Savior comes to meet us, to help us, as a child, in a state of humility, obedience, dependence, lowliness, simplicity, and willingness. This lesson that Christ teaches us by virtue of His humble birth is reinforced later on with His disciples when they ask him Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven? Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. (Matt. 18: 1-4) In the weeks leading up to Christmas, to this meeting between God and humankind, the Church calls on us to offer our Lord the best of our humanity in imitation of the Virgin Mother, while at the same time aspiring to enter the Kingdom of Heaven by becoming as He became as a little child. With prayers for a joyous Christmas season and a New Year filled with inspiring and humbling meetings with Christ our God, and continuing in His service, I remain Fr. Nikolas In the Feast of the Nativity, the Church reminds us that Jesus was indeed an infant, and then a toddler, child, an adolescent, teenager, etc. well before beginning His earthly ministry. And Archangel Michael Nov/Dec

4 News & Events Worship Services & Sacraments Sunday, Nov. 30th 3:30 pm, Baptism: Child of Nick and Helen Mantadakis WORSHIP SERVICES Saturday, Nov. 1st* (*denotes Chapel) m, Liturgy: Sts. Cosmas & Damian Saturday, Dec. 6th 11:30 am, Baptism: Child of Hercules and Lainie Bontzokales Friday, Nov. 7th Saturday, Nov. 8th Thursday, Nov. 13th* Saturday, Nov. 15th* 7:30 pm, Vespers: Feast of the Archangels 8:30 am, Orthos 9:30 am, Liturgy: Feast of the Archangels 9:30 am, Liturgy: St. John Chrysostom 10:30 am, Challenge Liturgy Sunday, Dec. 7th Sunday, Dec. 14th 3:30 pm, Wedding of Kosta Dagoulis and Kristina Salerno 2:00 pm, Wedding of John Kadas and Maria Despotis Baptism: Child of Elias and Maria Romeos Friday, Nov. 21st * Tuesday, Nov. 25th* Tuesday, Dec. 4th* Saturday, Dec. 6th * Friday, Dec. 12th* Saturday, Dec. 13th * Wednesday, Dec. 17th* Wednesday, Dec. 24th Thursday, Dec. 25th SACRAMENTS Sunday, Nov. 9th Sunday, Nov. 16th Saturday, Nov. 22nd Sunday, Nov. 23rd Saturday, Nov. 29th 9:30 am, Liturgy: Entrance of the Theotokos Into the Temple 9:30 am, Liturgy: Sts. Katherine & Mercurios m, Liturgy: St. Barbara 9:30 am, Liturgy: St. Nicholas 9:30 am, Liturgy: St. Spyridon 10:30 am, Challenge Liturgy 9:30 am, Liturgy: Sts. Daniel & Dionysios 7:30 pm, Vespers: The Nativity of our Lord 9:30 am, Liturgy: The Nativity of our Lord 1:00 pm, Baptism: Child of Aaron and Lara Lemons 4:00 pm, Baptism: Child of Gerasimos and Ximena Skaliotis 3:00 pm, Baptism: Child of Konstantinos and Vicky Anastasis 4:30 pm, Baptism: Child of Steve and Nicole Koutsogiannis 2:00 pm, Baptism: Children of Jason and Nicole Eliopoulos 2:00 pm, Baptism: Child of George and Vickie Ventouratos 2:00 pm, Wedding of Phil Onesto and Emily Vlahos 3:30 pm, Baptism: Child of Stamatis and Geraldine Xydas Stewardship Update Many thanks to all who helped make this year s Festival on the Harbor such a resounding success. The combination of great preparation by our festival committees, generous donors and sponsors, great community spirit and teamwork from our unparalleled number of volunteers and great weather made for an exciting and financially rewarding weekend. However, as a reminder, the festival finances are used to fund our ongoing construction costs and pay down our outstanding mortgage balance. The budgeted operating expenses to run our wonderful new facility (including our church, chapel, gymnasium, education classrooms and fellowship hall) are approximately $950,000 per annum. This is an expense that is solely met through Stewardship and other fundraising efforts! Through September, we have received Stewardship pledges of $506,052 and collected $445,541 towards our 2014 budget of $550,000. With another winter on the horizon and increases in utility, snow removal and other expenses, your assistance will be vital in helping us to meet our funding requirements. Thank you for your continued support! Philoptochos We know that all things work together for good for them that love God, to them who are the called according to His Purpose. Romans 8:28 We invite the women of the community to become members of our Archangel Michael Philoptochos. Your support will make us stronger and give us the opportunity to have a greater impact in our outreach, both within our Church community, as well as nationally and worldwide. The 2014 Festival on the Harbor marked our fourth year as the Loukoumamas. We worked non-stop for three days making loukoumades, which are a festival favorite. We may be exhausted but we sure had a great time making what have become the best loukoumades on Long Island! 4 Archangel Michael Nov/Dec

5 News & Events adorning the new, brightly colored bulletin boards, which can be found in the classrooms and hallways. The members of Philoptochos have been busy honoring their commitments. Our local commitments include our Challenge Liturgy, Hellenos House, area soup kitchens, as well as hospital and nursing home visits, to mention a few. We also assist in special appeals, such as earthquake and hurricane fundraising, and support philanthropies designated on the Archdiocesan and national levels. The Philoptochos will once again host the reception for our Archangel Michael Church Feast Day celebration after Vespers services on Friday, November 7th and after Liturgy on Saturday, November 8th. All are welcome and encouraged to participate. The annual Archangel Michael Ladies Philoptochos Christmas Family Luncheon will be held on Sunday, December 7, 2014 at noon at the North Hills Country Club. There will be special entertainment for the children, a visit from Santa, plus a few new surprises! Please join us for this wonderful community Christmas tradition. More information and reservation details can be found on the back cover of this issue. Greek School Board Earlier this year, we said a bittersweet goodbye to two of our veteran teachers, Mrs. Michaels and Mrs. Athanasoulis. We welcomed two new teachers to our school, Mrs. Filio Diakogiannis and Mr. Stavros Kilimitzoglou, as well as a new administrative assistant, Mrs. Emily Vlachos. The Board extends its very best wishes to all and is thankful to have a highly skilled staff again this year. Below is a list of our teachers and their respective classes: Mrs. Alimaris(K); Ms. Harris(K); Ms. Bouloubasi(1st); Mrs. Diakogiannis(2nd); Mrs. Kostakos & Mrs. Spyridakis (3rd); Mr. Kilimitzoglou(4th); Mrs. Varsamis(5th); Mrs. Viennas(6th); Mrs. Capous(7th and Regents). We are pleased to report that the teachers and students have settled in nicely thus far, teaching and studying language, culture, history, mythology, religion and dance, as discussed at the October Curriculum Open House meetings. An abundance of classwork and homework projects, created by our children, may be seen As always, there will be no school on November 11th, Veteran s Day. We are looking forward to the Christmas Assembly on Tuesday December 23rd. For school uniforms, please see Mrs. Vlachos in the main office. Congratulations to Fr. Dennis, Fr. Nikolas, the chairpersons, committees and all the volunteers, many of whom were our parents, teachers and students, for a Spectacular 4th Festival on the Harbor! Και του χρονου! ΚΑΛΕΣ ΓΙΟΡΤΕΣ Happy Holidays to All! Greek School PTA Greek school is now well underway, and the children are benefitting from the PTA s fundraising efforts. The children are using the new Papaloizos books and workbooks, new AMC folders, pencil cases, and pencils. Teachers are now able to decorate all of the bulletin boards throughout the hallways and classrooms with the children s work. These are just a few of the things that have become possible as a result of the work of the PTA! This month and next month, we will be preparing our families for the blessed holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas. The PTA will also be getting ready for its annual Glendi, our main fundraising event. We are grateful to Angelic Durante, for stepping up as this year s chairperson and encourage you to join the Glendi committee to help bring this event to fruition. Together, by simply giving one hour a week of our time, we can move mountains. If you haven t already joined, or gotten involved with the PTA, please consider it. Every hour of time you put into volunteering with us results in the priceless satisfaction of accomplishing something for our children. The PTA is honored to welcome our new Treasurer, Antonia Bizekis. Congratulations Antonia!!! Archangel Michael Nov/Dec

6 News & Events GENERAL ASSEMBLY Please note that the date of the General Assembly meeting has been changed to Sunday, November 2nd. All stewards are encouraged to attend. Sunday School The Sunday School program has been running very smoothly with the implementation of our new Church program, which commenced in October. This year, children in 2nd grade and older attend Church and participate in the Divine Liturgy with their parents and families until the reading of the Holy Gospel. Some students are then dismissed to attend their Sunday School classes. On a weekly and rotating basis, different classes stay in Church until after Holy Communion. Those students and their teachers then proceed to the Chapel, where either Father Dennis or Father Nikolas highlight the various topics that relate to this year s theme of The Sacraments of our Church. During the months of November and December, as indicated by the schedule of classes below, Father Dennis and Father Nikolas will be discussing the Sacraments of Chrismation and Eucharist. November 2nd : Grades 2, 3 and 4 November 9th : Grades 5, 6 and 7 November 16th : Grade 8 and Young Adults November 23rd : Grades 2, 3 and 4 December 7th : Grades 5, 6 and 7 December 14th : Grade 8 and Young Adults The Chapel Sermon Schedule which has been mailed to parents, is also available in the Sunday School office or from the Sunday School teachers. Our Annual Christmas Pageant will be held on Sunday, December 21st after the Divine Liturgy. Please encourage your children to participate in this beautiful pageant. Please contact the Sunday School office for an application form. We are looking forward to a great turnout and a wonderful production celebrating the Nativity of our Lord. Preschool The Preschool Halloween Fundraiser was a great success! We would like to thank everyone who supported this event, and especially Mr. & Mrs. Mamais and Mrs. Barberis for their donations of baked goods. In October, the children went on a trip to the Pumpkin Patch, where they enjoyed a hayride, feeding the animals and picking pumpkins. In November, the children are learning about Archangel Michael and St. Catherine. Our rooms are decorated with Thanksgiving crafts and everyone is waiting for our Thanksgiving Feast. The Pre-K and Nursery children will continue working on their Thanksgiving books and all will be making Thanksgiving turkeys, and learning about giving thanks for the things they have. The Toddler and Mommy and Me classes participate in music and body movement with Miss Cecilia, and are learning songs through music, finger play, and story time. December is going to be a very exciting month for all of the children! The Pre-K class will be making Christmas books to share with the Nursery class. They will be learning Greek and English Christmas carols for our Sing-a-Long on December 18th and they will also perform a play of the story of the Nativity, read by Father Dennis. The highlight of the season will be a trip to visit Santa Claus! We look forward to meeting with parents during Parent Teacher Conferences on Wednesday, December 3rd. There will be no Preschool that day. The Archangel Michael Preschool welcomes new students and families! If you are interested in visiting the school, or would like more information, please call Byzantine Youth Choir We extend a warm welcome to our new youth choir members: Maria Bapis, Iliana Delgado, Athena Kyriannis, Gabrielle Orthos, Eleni Pappas, Eliana Salloum, Joanne Salloum, Ioanna Sarosy, Lea Tahliambouris and Marina Tsimisiris. Each year, the Direct Archdiocesan District Federation of Greek Orthodox Church Musicians awards scholarships to youth choir musicians from across the district. It is a pleasure to announce that Karalyn Pappas of Archangel Michael Byzantine Youth Choir has been selected to receive a 2014 Scholarship Award in the amount of $1, The award will be presented during the Annual Federation Conference on November 2nd at the conclusion of the Hierarchical Liturgy at Zoodohos Peghe Greek Orthodox Church in the Bronx N.Y. Congratulations Karalyn! This year, the Federation of Church Musicians is celebrating their 30th Anniversary! Please take note that our youth choir will be singing at the Federation Conference Liturgy at Zoodohos Peghe on Sunday, November 2nd. Round-trip bus transportation will be provided. 6 Archangel Michael Nov/Dec

7 News & Events Youth Ministries GOYA We kicked off the GOYA year on Friday, September 6th, with registration and an Ice Cream Social. It was an evening for the GOY- Ans to socialize with each other and shoot some hoops. We are off to a great start with over 100 GOYAns registered. We are planning a special Thanksgiving visit with the residents of Hellenos House on Sunday, November 16th. On Sunday, November 23rd, we are going on a Broadway Theatre trip to see the thrilling musical production, Aladdin. Round-trip bus transportation is being arranged. Look for more information to come for both of these wonderful events! During the month of December, we join the fun at the Philoptochos Christmas Brunch and share in celebrating the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ at the Sunday School Christmas Pageant. Congratulations to the GOYA board: Co-Presidents: Demetri Kyriannis, Demetri Limperopoulos, Catherine Saketos and Nicole Yioupis Co-Vice Presidents: Stavros Reynolds, Artemis Tsagaris and Demetra Vlahos Co-Secretaries: Tommy Drenis, Arianna Nikolis, David Reppucci and Marika Reynolds Co-Treasurers: Konstantinos Geleris, Steve Gerazounis and Yanni Ziozis May the Light of our Lord Fill your Hearts! Wishing Everyone a Blessed Christmas! Greek Dance Troupe The performance by The Archangel Michael Greek Dance Troupe at the AMC Festival on the Harbor was enjoyed by all! This was just one of the many performances scheduled throughout the year. The Troupe is looking forward to dancing at the annual Challenge Liturgy Christmas Luncheon in December. The Dance Troupe meets on Saturdays throughout the school year and welcomes children from kindergarten through the 12th grade. Class times are as follows: Grades K-2 from 9-10am, Grades 3-5 from 10-11am and Grades 6 & up from 11-12noon. Registration is ongoing and we welcome new members! Please visit the church website for a registration form and for more information greekdance@archangelmichaelchurch.org GOYA Day on September 20th, at Holiday Hill in Prospect, Ct. was a beautiful day filled with activities and good food. It gave parishes from the Metro NY and Connecticut area the opportunity to come together and simply have fun! We could not have asked for better weather for the AMC 4th Annual Festival! The GOYAns volunteered their time throughout the weekend in areas such as the Ring Toss, Taverna, Snack Bar on the Bay, replenishing supplies and selling ice cream and baklava. Great job for their community service! In October, our Bowling Night held at Sheridan Lanes gave the GOYAns a chance to meet new friends and share some laughs! On October 19th, we hosted our Annual GOYA Pancake Breakfast after liturgy. The GOYAns would like to thank everyone for their efforts, donations and participation in making the event a success. There is still time to join GOYA! Please send an to goya@archangelmichaelchurch.org. Archangel Michael Nov/Dec

8 News & Events HOPE/JOY Our HOPE/JOY organization provides a safe, fun and spiritual atmosphere for our children to build lifelong friendships and grow in our Orthodox faith. September was a month filled with getting back to school and our Festival on the Harbor, which was a great success. Thank you to everyone who volunteered! As this Trumpet issue was going to print, both HOPE and JOY children were eagerly awaiting our ever-popular Halloween Party. They couldn t wait to see the great costumes, and looked forward to dancing and playing the night away, while creating wonderful memories with families and wonderful friends. Our HOPE group can look forward to our Family Gingerbread House Making, followed by our Christmas Party in December. Our JOY members will be participating in two special holiday season retreats: Thanks and Giving in November and Celebrating the Birth of Christ in December. All of our HOPE/JOY information and events are sent via . You can also look on our new bulletin boards in the hallways by the classrooms for current information! If your address has changed, please let us know by sending an to hopejoy@archangelmichaelchurch.org. We look forward to seeing you soon! PARISH COUNCIL ELECTIONS Nominations for Parish Council will close on Monday, December 1st. PC elections will be held on Sunday, December 14th. CONSECRATION OF OUR CHURCH Save the weekend! The Consecration of our Archangel Michael Church will take place during the weekend of April 25th. Specific dates and details will become available soon. Fellowship Events Our first Fellowship event of the new ecclesiastical year was Welcome Back Sunday, on September 7th. There were representatives from all of our AMC organizations on hand to handle registrations and plenty of information about upcoming parish events--but more importantly, Welcome Back Sunday offered a day for all to see the MANY ways to participate in the life of our beloved church through faith, fellowship and service. Athletics The first AMC Youth Basketball Camp, offered at the end of August, was an outstanding success! The program was led by Coach Bob Kaible, who runs our AMC Basketball Instructional program, and Assistant Coach Anthony. The basketball camp was held over a two-week period and had 50 enthusiastic participants. For six hours every day, the children played games, ran drills and went through a variety of exercises and activities that enhanced their basketball skills. By the end of week two, the children had reached a new level of success. The children who participated expressed their joy at attending this year s camp, and they look forward to attending future AMC Basketball camps. For more information on all of our athletics programs, please visit the church website and click on Athletics in the Youth section. THANK YOU! A big thank you to those who helped make our 4th Festival on the Harbor the best yet! Look for more pictures, thank yous, and sponsors in the next Trumpet issue. Please mark your calendars for the upcoming year. 2014: November 22 and New Year s Eve. 2015: February 27, April 3, and June 7 (End of the Year BBQ). Our next Fellowship event will be held on Saturday, November 22nd. Look for more information to come! If you would like to help with our Fellowship Nights, please membership@archangelmichaelchurch.org. Challenge Liturgy Program We are pleased to announce that St. Nicholas Church, located at 200 Great East Neck Road, West Babylon, NY has inaugurated a Challenge Liturgy Program that will serve Eastern Nassau and Suffolk County residents. Fr. Demetrios Kazakis, Presbyter, will conduct monthly religious services for physically and developmentally challenged Orthodox Christians, on the first Saturday of each month at 10:00am. We welcome the program and extend our best wishes for its success. We look forward to a close association with St. Nicholas Church and stand ready to assist in any way that we can. 8 Archangel Michael Nov/Dec

9 News & Events AMC parishioners are asked to pass this information on to friends and relatives out east who may benefit from this program. For further information please call the St. Nicholas Church office at The Archangel Michael Church Challenge Liturgy is generally held on the third Saturday of each month at 10:30am. However, our December Challenge Liturgy and annual Christmas party will take place on Saturday, December 13th. All members of our community are welcome to attend the Challenge Liturgies. Flagship Family ministry Parish The mission of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Center for Family Care, a unit of the Department of Marriage and Family, is to affirm the importance of the family as a blessed gift of God and to address the specific needs of families as they live in a very challenging world. Each Metropolis has designated one parish as their Flagship Family Ministry Parish. For the Direct Archdiocesan District (our home district) the Archangel Michael Church has been selected and recognized for our service in two areas: our Challenge Liturgy Program, and our Fellowship Nights. DIRECT ARCHDIOCESAN DISTRICT ARCHANGEL MICHAEL GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH PORT WASHINGTON, NEW YORK CHALLENGE LITURGY We have participated in the Challenge Liturgy program for 15 years with our son who has Down Syndrome. It has been a wonderful place for us to share with other parents and for our son to make friends. Most importantly it is a no judgment zone where there is acceptance for everyone. It was through the Challenge Liturgy that our son was taught how to serve in altar. This was a stepping stone for him and now he serves in altar most Sundays. Our Archangel Michael parish will work with the Center for Family Care to learn more about resources available to help us grow in our ministry to families. This program involves evaluation, to assess strengths with regard to family ministry, as well as areas of growth; sharing, to collaborate with other parishes on common issues facing our parish, our faith, and our programming; and education, to offer programs best suited to address the needs of our parish. At the recent biennial Clergy Laity Conference in Philadelphia, banners from each of the selected Flagship Family Ministry parishes were displayed. A photo of our banner is shown at the right, and the actual banner is on display outside the Church office. Photo Credit: D. Panagos JOURNAL INFORMATION To commemorate the consecration of the Archangel Michael Church scheduled for April 2015 and the celebration of our 35th Anniversary, we will be publishing a journal. All proceeds will be allocated to the Capital Campaign account to help defray some of the remaining construction costs and to partially service our mortgage. Please make every effort to subscribe and also try to obtain ads from your local merchants, banks, neighbors, relatives and friends. Subscription forms are available at the church pangari, the office, and on the AMC website. Participation by everyone will be greatly appreciated. The Challenge Liturgy is celebrated on the third Saturday of every month. Individuals of all ages with special needs and their families from the surrounding communities are welcome to participate in this beautiful liturgy. The families also enjoy social gatherings, fellowship, and community outreach. s Archangel Michael Nov/Dec

10 News & Events Hellenos House Congratulations and Best Wishes to the residents and staff of HELLENOS HOUSE on the occasion of the Sixth Anniversary of its opening. May the incredible successes of the past six years continue to guide its future endeavors. Since its inception, Hellenos House has provided a stable, loving and stimulating residential environment for our children. Thanks to ACDS, the agency that operates and manages Hellenos House, and its focus on independent living, the residents are encouraged to welcome and experience new challenges. THANK YOU! A special thank you from Evangelia Cyprus to all who assisted with the AMC Festival pastitsios that were prepared in our lovely new kitchen: Christina Diamantakis, Kiki Cotronis, Alkmini Diakoumakis, Kiki Nicolopoulos, Eleni Germanakos, Josephine Karras, Demi Psyllos, Georgia Mouzakitis, Karen Zaffos and Georganne Conis. We had a great team, a lot of fun and good cheer. Hope to do it all over again next year! The vision of Hellenos House becoming an integral part of our parish, as well as of the Greek-American community, has also been realized. On this special occasion we thank our many loyal parishioners and parish organizations, most especially the AMC Ladies Philoptochos Society, the DAD Philoptochos chapters and other community organizations for their unwavering and generous support. SUPER RAFFLE Thank you to all who supported our Super Raffle! The winners were announced on September 28th at the close of the festival. Congratulations to the following prize winners: 1:Maria Koutsoyiannis, 2:George Christides, 3:Mary Stell, 4:Maria Vitsentzos, 5:Stu Lippman, 6:Olivia Istratis Phillippis, 7:Evangelos Michailidis, 8:Mike & Emily Kavourias,9:Panayioti Douvres, 10:Maria Eleni Moliviatis, 11:Louie Theofanis, 12: Drew Figdor, 13:Xenios, 14:Eleni & Nick Koutsoftas, 15:Fiti & Angelica Kassimis, 16: Kathleen Friend, 17:Manny Kehouryiakis, 18:Alvin Rodriguez, 19:Chrystalla Neocleous, 20:Michael Bapis, 21:Andrea Rosen, 22:George Korakis, 23:Peter Modifica, 24:Stephanie Trieste, 25:Lee Galvez, 26:Peter Pantelias, 27:Nicoletta Z, 28:Larrisa & Edwin Fernandez, 29:James Nelson, 30:Tam Le, 31:Scot Barten, 32:Tommy Dimopoulos, 33:Vasilios Gerazounis, 34:Tina Handras, 35:Kostantinos/Nick Xanthos 10 Archangel Michael Nov/Dec

11 Community Life Photos Archangel Michael Nov/Dec

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14 ARCHANGEL MICHAEL GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH November Calendar 2014 Sun Mon Tues Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 Liturgy - Chapel Cosmas & Damian Divine Liturgy DAD Federation Conference Liturgy Philoptochos Meeting 7:30p Election Day- No Preschool Youth Choir Rehearsal 7:30p Vespers-Feast of the Archangels 7:30p Feast of the Archangels Orthros 8:30a Liturgy General Assembly Nameday Dinner Dance 7:00p Divine Liturgy GOYA Mtg & Social 11:30a Veterans Day - No Preschool, No Greek School Youth Choir Rehearsal 7:30p Liturgy - Chapel St. John Chrysostom GOYA Toys for Toys R Us Challenge Liturgy 10:30a Divine Liturgy GOYA Meeting 11:30a Youth Choir Visit to Hellenos House Youth Choir Rehearsal 7:30p Liturgy - Chapel Entrance of the Theotokos Into the Temple GOYA Harvest St. Markella Fellowship Night Divine Liturgy Youth Choir Theater Trip Liturgy - Chapel Sts. Katherine & Mercurios Happy Thanksgiving Preschool & Office closed Our Lady of Fatima Divine Liturgy Archangel Michael Nov/Dec

15 ARCHANGEL MICHAEL GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH December Calendar 2014 Sun Mon Tues Wed Thu Fri Sat PC Nominations Close No Preschool: Parent-teacher conferences Liturgy-Chapel St. Barbara Liturgy-Chapel St. Nicholas Philoptochos Meeting 7:30p Youth Choir Rehearsal 7:30p GOYA Tree Trimming Camp St. Paul Reunion in Rye Divine Liturgy Youth Choir Rehearsal 7:30p Liturgy - Chapel St. Spyridon Philoptochos Christmas Brunch Divine Liturgy Parish Council Elections After Liturgy Youth Choir Rehearsal 7:30p Liturgy - Chapel Sts. Daniel & Dionysios Preschool Sing-a-Long Divine Liturgy Sunday School Christmas Pageant Greek School Christmas Assembly Vespers/Liturgy- The Nativity of Our Lord 7:30p Liturgy - The Nativity of Our Lord Merry Christmas Divine Liturgy GOYA 5 Borough Central Lounge NEW YEARS EVE GALA 8:30p Please note: Preschool Christmas Recess: Dec. 22-Jan.4. Prechool resumes on January 5th Greek School Christmas Recess: Dec. 25- Jan. 7. GS resumes on January 8th. Archangel Michael Nov/Dec

16 Archangel Michael Greek Orthodox Church 100 Fairway Drive Port Washington, NY 11050