Volume 20, Issue 18 | Wednesday, October 7, 2026

Kaitson Continues Visitation Tour in Western Canada

AHEPA Supreme President E. Chris Kaitson continued his Northwest visitation with stops in Vancouver, British Columbia, and Calgary, Alberta, joined by Canadian President Anastasios Moussas. In Vancouver, Past Canadian President and SOP Past Supreme President George Vassilas hosted a gathering where current AHEPA officers met with the Supreme President and Canadian leadership to discuss AHEPA events, programs, and priorities.

The Supreme President then traveled to Calgary, where members of Calgary AHEPA Chapter CJ-11 gathered to hear updates on AHEPA’s programs and initiatives and discuss the work of the organization at the chapter level. The Canadian visitations provided an opportunity for Supreme President Kaitson to connect directly with AHEPA brothers across the region and hear from local leadership.

The Northwest visitation will continue with stops in Portland and Seattle before Supreme President Kaitson returns to Washington, D.C., for meetings.

AHEPA Family Attends Beacon of Hope Dinner

AHEPA Supreme President E. Chris Kaitson led an AHEPA Family delegation to Casa Cipriani in New York City for the annual Beacon of Hope Dinner, which this year honored Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the people of Ukraine for their courage and resilience in defending freedom. The award was accepted on their behalf by Ukraine’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Dr. Andrii Melnyk. The evening also featured remarks by Archbishop Elpidophoros of America, Michael G. Psaros, Vice Chairman of the St. Nicholas Shrine Board, a video message from Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, and Superhumans Center CEO Olga Rudnieva.

Supreme President Kaitson was joined at the event by Supreme Secretary Themistocles Frangos, Past Supreme Presidents Savas C. Tsivicos, Andrew C. Zachariades, and Nicholas A. Karacostas, Daughters of Penelope Grand President Antoinette Marousis Zachariades, and other members of the AHEPA Family. The evening brought together themes of courage and resilience, remembrance of the 25th anniversary of September 11, and anticipation of the 250th anniversary of American independence. Supreme President Kaitson also had the opportunity to meet with Ambassador Melnyk during the event.

AHEPA Family Supports the Federation of Cypriot American Organizations at Annual Dinner

An AHEPA Family delegation, led by Supreme President Kaitson, attended the 2026 Federation of Cypriot American Organizations (FCAO) annual testimonial dinner held at Terrace on the Park in Flushing Meadows, NY.

His Excellency Nikos Christodoulides, President of the Republic of Cyprus, served as an honorary Chair of the event along with His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America. Honorees for the evening were John Josephakis, VP of NVIDIA, who received the Federation's Lifetime Achievement Award; Stavros Kamilaris, President of the Lampousa Cypriot American Association; and Despina Axiotakis, Past General Secretary of the Cyprus Federation of America, who were both honored with FCAO's Community Service Award.

Members of the Supreme Lodge, multiple AHEPA Past Supreme Presidents, DOP Grand President Antoinette Marousis Zachariades, and SOP Supreme President George Kalyvas were also in attendance at this wonderful event, of which the Order of AHEPA was also a proud sponsor of.

AHEPA Leaders Meet with Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis During Scheduled UN Assembly

During the scheduled UN Assembly in New York City this week, AHEPA Leadership attended the "Oli Mazi," Luncheon - a collaborative event co-hosted by AHEPA and numerous additional Greek American organizations welcoming Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic, Kyriakos Mitsotakis to the U.S.

Representing AHEPA on this monumental occasion were Supreme President E. Chris Kaitson, Supreme Vice President Dr. Zenon Christodoulou, Supreme Secretary Themistocles Frangos, Supreme Counselor Theodore Stamas, Supreme Governor Asteris Fanikos, BOT Chairman Nicholas A. Karacostas, PSP, Esq., BOT Vice Chairman Savas Tsivicos, PSP, Sons of Pericles Supreme President George Kalyvas and Maids of Athena Grand President Cristina Saavedra-Mamounis.

Read the Full Article

AHEPA Announces AHEPA's Month of Service

AHEPA's Month of Service Committee recently announced, on behalf of AHEPA Supreme President Chris Kaitson, that November will be AHEPA's Month of Service. During this month, the entire Order of AHEPA domain will unite in support of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The committee requests that every Chapter and District make a monetary donation or pledge for St. Jude by the deadline of November 24, 2026. See the above flyer for more details!

Brooklyn Ch. 41 Hosts Supreme Lodge, Initiates new Members

Wonderful turnout for AHEPA Chapter 41 of Brooklyn, NY, for Supreme President Chris Kaitson’s visitation and initiation!

Members of the Supreme and District Lodges came together to participate in and assist with the initiation. Supreme President Kaitson was joined by Supreme Secretary Themistocles Frangos, Supreme Counselor Ted Stamos, and Past Supreme Presidents Jimmy Kokotas and Nicholas Karacostas, Chairman of AHEPA’s Board of Trustees, both from New York.

Also joining the evening were Sons of Pericles Supreme President George Kalyvas and Past Sons of Pericles Supreme President Peter Vlittas. Empire District 6 Governor Kostas Prentzas and members of his lodge were also on hand to assist with the evening’s events.

Chapter 41 hosted a special dinner meeting, initiation, and visitation. The Chapter gifted the Supreme President with an antique George Dilboy statuette made in 1930, which will be kept in the AHEPA archives, as well as a Chapter branded shirt and humidor in honor of his visit.

Having celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2024, Chapter 41 continues to be a powerhouse chapter within Empire District 6. Congratulations and thank you to all the brothers who continue to make AHEPA awesome!

AEF Awards initial 2026 Scholarships

George Vorkas, Chairman of the Ahepa Educational Foundation, advised Supreme President Chris Kaitson that the initial awarding of the 2026 scholarships has been completed. Awards ranging from as little as $2500 up to $25,000 have been announced. A partial list of awardees is listed below. Ahepa awards over $3M annually in educational scholarships across the Ahepa domain.

John George Tsitsos Scholarship

Vasilios Agoris, MA

Joshua Brown, MA

Nikki Demacopoulos, NY

Cleoniki Demetriou, AZ

Chrysanthie Frangos, CA

Nilab Ghauri, MA

Michael Ketchum, MA

Christos Kladeftiras, MA

Garrett Klawuhn, MA

Stefan Kleinhenz, MA

Dimitrios Konstantinou, MA

Eleni Kostouros, IN

Nicolas Kousoulas, CA

Eleni Lambrianos, FL

Gabriel Lawrence, MA

Demetrios Mesogitis, PA

George Moshopoulos, MA

Falia Pantieras, Ottawa, Canada

Scott Semelsberger, VA

Madeline Takos, PA

Nikolaos Tripolitsiotis, MI

Jacob Watkin, MA

Ludovic Wiechecki, MA

ANHC Pioneers Scholarship

Kalia Bakas, MI

Evan Jordanides, OH

Sofia Lelekis, FL

Spiridon Tullius, CO

SOP/MOA Youth Scholarship

George Robokos, NY

Carlos Touris

Scholarship

Stavros Fay, NJ

Nikonas Gianitsos, TX

Efstratios Kaloudis, NY

Anna Sophia Kladis, AZ

George Louh, FL

Gianna Visvardis, FL

Chariclea Cummings

Scholarship

Aubree Workman, ID

George A. Paterakis

Scholarship

Petros Antonoglou, NJ

Anastasia Chambers, FL

Effrosyni Giannakou, PA

Andreas Hadjikyriakos, Cyprus

Paraskevie Liyeos, IL

Marina Makropoulos, IL

Vasilike Pappas, PA

Nikolaos Tripolitsiotis, MI

Iliana Tzafolias, VA

Anthony Vassilyadi, Ottawa, Canada

James Campbell

Scholarship

Asa Bergander, MD

Despoina Theofanopoulos, TX

Efthymia Theofanopoulou, TX

Anastasia Zajac, NY

James Campbell

Scholarship

Nikita Athens, WI

John C. Balis, NY

Katherine Bonadeo, CA

David Bonadeo, CA

Constantina Bournias, MI

Toula Darakos, PA

James Diamantis, MA

MelinaDorian, MD

John Economou, VA

Tess Emanuel, VA

Savas Emanuel, VA

Michael Frangos, OH

Alexander Georges, NJ

Chrysa Georgountzos, MA

Christina Kapros, CT

Alexandra Kastrisianaki, CA

Petros Kiafoulis, NJ

Alexandros Kontogiannis, NJ

Gabriel Kostaridis, NY

Demetra Kostaridis, NY

George Lazarou, NJ

Michael Lelekis, FL

Elizabeth Maltezos, SC

Evangelia Maxwell, WI

AlysonMichaels, NJ

MelinaNitsiotis, CA

Philip Pagonis, NY

Katerina Panagiotopoulos, IL

Michael Pantelakis, OH

Alaina Papadakos, IL

Konstantinos Papanikolas, NJ

Maria-Evelina Pentakalou, Greece

Kinsley Pournaras, PA

Zoe Reppas, FL

Maria Tsevdos, NY

Marina Lynne Vlassopoulos, PA

Congratulations to all of our winners! Additional scholarships yet to be awarded are the Sam Nakos Scholarship and the AHEPA Journey to Greece Scholarship which will be announced at a later date.

District 6 to host Regional Banquet

Download Journal Ad Form

Summer 2026 AHEPAN

The latest issue of The AHEPAN is now available online! Make sure to check it out and see what the AHEPA family was up to in the beginning of 2026!

Read the Issue!

Publicize Your Chapter & District Events!

Is your Chapter or District hosting an event you want publicized on a National Level? Starting this week, you can submit your event to have it posted on the AHEPA Website!

Fill out the form linked below with your event information to have it publicized. Remember that this information will be public on our website, so keep that in mind before you submit personal phone numbers or home addresses. We recommend listing an email address as a point of contact rather than a telephone number.

Upcoming Events & Deadlines

November

21 | AHEPA 2026 Regional Banquet

December

31 | Membership Dues Submission Deadline

Submit Your Events!

Greek American News Digest

Editor's Note: Editorials, commentaries, opinion pieces, and articles are shared for information purposes only and do not necessarily reflect the views or policy positions of the Order of AHEPA, its affiliated organizations, and members

US ambassador's interventions in Greece spark controversy in Bucharest and Athens

Le Monde (October 6)

You can share an article by clicking on the share icons at the top right of it.

The Wall Street Journal's reports on Saturday, September 26, and Sunday, September 27, concerning Kimberly Guilfoyle, the US ambassador to Greece, have elicited strong reactions in both Bucharest and Athens. The American daily newspaper detailed how the diplomat allegedly pressured Balkan leaders to purchase more American liquefied natural gas (LNG). The WSJ described a dinner in March during which Guilfoyle was said to have had a confrontation with the Greek energy minister, Stavros Papastavrou. While the WSJ did not specify the reason, the ambassador reportedly mentioned the imminent fall of the Romanian government and said, "We can do that to any country we want. We can do it here." Papastavrou is said to have replied that the US could not replace the democratically elected Greek government. Guilfoyle's lawyer has disputed this account, but that was not enough to put an end to the ensuing debate. read more

Greece projects faster 2027 growth, steeper debt ratio decline

Ekathimerini (October 5)

Greece expects its economy to grow faster in 2027, outperforming Europe’s major economies, thanks to higher investment and robust consumer spending, the government’s 2027 draft budget showed on Monday. It expects gross domestic product to ⁠rise 2.3% next year, following expansion of ⁠2.0% this year, with investments rising by 7.9% and private consumption by 1.5%. “Despite an adverse external environment, the Greek economy is expected to continue posting significantly stronger growth than the euro zone average for a seventh ⁠consecutive year,” Greek Finance Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis said in a press release after submitting the draft budget to parliament. read more

‘Hitting the right nail’: Refugee rescue group defiant as Greece targets it

Aljazeera (October 6)

To Greek authorities, he is the nefarious Norwegian mastermind of an international criminal organisation “operationally structured to commit repeated crimes”, which he secretly controls from his hometown of Tromso, north of the Arctic Circle. To thousands of distressed asylum seekers on the Aegean, he is a hero who may have saved their lives by publicly alerting search and rescue authorities who might rather not have known of their whereabouts. read more

Greece better prepared for energy supply risks, prices remain a concern

Ekathimerini (October 5)

Despite continued energy-security concerns in Europe amid the months-long conflict in the Middle East, Greece appears relatively well protected against shortages of energy products, although at a higher cost. The country’s stronger position reflects strategies pursued in recent years by companies in the refining and natural gas sectors. Greece’s four refineries – three operated by Helleniq Energy and one by Motor Oil – have maintained and upgraded refining capacity while also investing in the energy transition, unlike the broader European trend of refinery closures or divestments. read more

Greece returns priceless relics – and suggests UK should follow suit with Parthenon marbles

The Guardian (October 3)

In a ceremony replete with the sort of fanfare usually reserved for great events, Greece and Bulgaria have formally exchanged “a treasury” of relics and bones, sealing a cultural deal negotiated over decades. The handover involved priceless religious objects removed from Greece at the height of the first world war, as well as remains thought to belong to Tsar Samuel, Bulgaria’s revered medieval warrior ruler. read more