Philoptochos News - May 2023

Christos Anesti! Christ is Risen!

Our heartfelt thanks to our devoted volunteers, under the direction of Niki Dougenis and Vicky Mellos, who so lovingly prepared and baked 2,000+ Koulourakia and 150+ loaves of Tsourekia for our Annual Pascha Bake Sale and Homebound Baskets. It was also special to have our Hope & Joy youth join us and learn how to make koulourakia! Thank you to the St. Spyridon community for supporting our fundraising efforts benefitting our chapter ministries and those in need.

Our Anthousa Chapter partnered with our St. Spyridon Youth Ministries to kick off the 2023 Blessing Bag Project on Holy Friday, April 14th. Many thanks to Melanie Anastopulos, Julie Dennis, and Kelly Samouris for overseeing this important project. It was heartwarming to see our youth fill Blessing Bags with toothbrushes, water bottles, hand sanitizers, granola bars and more...during their Holy Friday retreat. The bags will be distributed to the homeless community through our partnership with FOCUS (Fellowship of Orthodox Christians United to Serve). Our project is aligned with the National Philoptochos Feeding the Hungry campaign.

Anthousa Chapter Board Elections will be held on Sunday, May 21st following Divine Liturgy in the Lounge. To vote in this election, you must be a member in good standing in accordance with the Bylaws of Philoptochos as follows:

Eligibility to Vote: Full members who have fulfilled financial commitment to the chapter for the current year are eligible to vote. New members may vote if enrolled at least three (3) months prior to the election meeting.

All candidates seeking election to the Chapter Board must qualify in accordance with the Philoptochos Bylaws as follows:

In order to be a candidate for election to the Chapter Board, a full member must have been a member in good standing with the parish and chapter for a period of at least one full year prior to the date of election to the Chapter Board and must have attended a minimum of four (4) meetings / activities held in the previous year. All candidates must be present at the election meeting unless reasonable cause for such absence is provided. A member is qualified to serve on the Board of Directors of one chapter only.

Sunday Fellowship: Please consider sponsoring a Sunday Fellowship Hour with your friends and family by providing simple refreshments (donuts or bagels, fruit and juice). You can honor family members or celebrate special occasions. To sign up, please contact Christina Frangos christinafrangos1@gmail.com.

College Connection: Do you have a college-aged student in your family? Our chapter keeps your child connected with their faith and home church. Please send contact information (student’s name, college name and address, and year of graduation) to Bill Navrides Bill.Navrides@sharp.com.

Membership: We invite you to join Philoptochos! We welcome all -- ladies and gentlemen -- to help us make a difference in the lives of many. To join, please click the Membership tab above. The National and Metropolis Philoptochos treasuries each receive $15 of every membership donation; so any amount over $30 remains in our chapter’s treasury. Please contact Melanie Anastopulos melanieanastopulos@gmail.com or Kalliopi Samouris nyckelly@cox.net with questions.

Yours in Christ,

Sofia Samouris

Anthousa Chapter President