The AHEPAN - Fall 2011 - (Page 6)

sons anD maiDs messages Achievements will be Made through Teamwork, Initiative By Manolis Sfinarolakis, SOP Supreme President y name is Manolis Eftihios Sfinarolakis, and I am the newly elected Supreme President of the Sons of Pericles. It was a great honor and privilege to attend the wonderful festivities at the 89th Annual Supreme Convention in Miami Beach, Florida, and I wish the best of luck to the outgoing members of the Supreme and Grand lodges of the AHEPA, Daughters of Penelope, Maids of Athena, and Sons of Pericles. This year’s lodge was elected because of a key characteristic that each member possesses: initiative. We will be an action-oriented lodge this year that will operate within the framework of our constitution. We will encourage our membership, and the members of the AHEPA Family, to not only think about ideas to make our organization stronger, but to act on them. In the spirit of this proactive initiative, the Sons of Pericles and Maids of Athena have acted to choose a joint National Project, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International (www.jdrf.org), and the members of the Supreme Lodge are extremely excited to work with the Grand Lodge to raise funding for this worthy cause. We shall continue our membership initiative with members who M wish to join between the ages of 14 – 17 years old joining at no cost, and members 18 years and older paying $40 dues for dual membership in the Sons of Pericles and AHEPA. This new policy alone had a huge impact in the Sons of Pericles tripling its membership from the level of 18 months prior. Manolis Sfinarolakis We continue to have a man with the utmost integrity and enthusiasm acting as our National Advisor, Chris Economides Jr., who will continue to serve as our role model and trusted advisor. We seek others just like Mr. E. who we hope can serve as advisors at the local chapter level to help our members preserve their Hellenic roots, perform their civic responsibilities, and maintain a level of individual excellence to be admired by all with whom they come in contact. In closing, the Supreme Lodge and I look forward to having another year filled with expansion. There is a funny thing that happens when the AHEPA family works as a TEAM. Together Everyone Achieves More! Maids Select Diabetes Research, Domestic Violence Awareness as Projects By Marianthe Kolokithas, MOA Grand President his year promises to be an exciting one for the Maids of Athena. Not only has our delegation selected a spunky Grand Lodge which includes Grand Vice President Angela Armstrong, Grand Secretary Constantina Yannitsos, Grand Treasurer Diane Simeon, and Grand Governor Deanna Socaris…but they have also selected me as Grand President! Maids has given me the opportunity to travel throughout the U.S. to visit Sisters in Arizona, Georgia, and Canada. It has given me the opportunity to make friends for life. It has also given me scholarship opportunities, leadership skills, and speaking skills which will continue to benefit me within my future endeavors. These are only a few reasons why I love the Maids. I am truly honored that the Maids of Athena have put their faith in me to lead them through the 2011-2012 term. I grew up in Greenville, S.C., where I first joined the Maids. I moved to Charleston eight years ago to attend the College of Charleston. Still unsure of what type of career I wanted to pursue, I started working as a paralegal and quickly found that becoming a lawyer was one of my many goals in life. I am currently a part-time student at the Charleston School of Law while continuing to work as a paralegal. This year our theme is...“MOA Sisters Today, Great Leaders Tomorrow.” We chose this theme because we truly feel that each member of the Maids is a leader. Throughout the year we plan to showcase how Maids are becoming great leaders within their communities. Just within the T Grand Lodge we have one law student, one graduate student and three undergraduate students each continuing education while working within their communities and holding leadership positions. At the 2011 AHEPA Family National Convention the Maids delegation along with the Sons of Pericles selected the Marianthe Kolokithas Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International (JDRF) for this year’s National Project. JDRF’s mission is to find a cure for diabetes and it’s complications through the support of research. In 2009-2010, the Maids of Athena National Project was Penelope House and Domestic Violence Awareness. One in four women has experienced domestic violence in her lifetime. Women ages 20-24 are at the greatest risk of nonfatal intimate partner violence. This number is very alarming and is the reason why I selected Penelope House as this year’s President’s Project. It is also my personal goal to increase membership within the organization. I need the help of the Daughters of Penelope and AHEPA to accomplish this goal. I look forward to working with you this year. Please feel free to contact me with questions about the Maids. Here’s to a great year! 6 the ahepan Fall 2011 www.ahepa.org http://www.jdrf.org http://www.ahepa.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The AHEPAN - Fall 2011

The AHEPAN - Fall 2011
Contents
Supreme President’s Message
Daughters of Penelope Message
Sons of Pericles Message
Maids of Athena Message
AHEPA Family News
South Beach Sizzles, The ‘Bleau Dazzles
The Journey Continues… With a Focus on Volunteerism
AHEPA Supports Military Family Reading Program through USO
Education
Housing
Athletics
AHEPA Family Chapter News

The AHEPAN - Fall 2011