June/July 2015 Monthly Newsletter

608 SOUTH COLLEGE ROAD WILMINGTON NC 28403 (910) 392-4444 FAX (910) 392-4905

www.stnicholaswilmington.org

June & July 2015

The Sunday of All Saints

June 7

http://www.stnicholaswilmington.org/

St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church June & July 2015

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Fr. Jon Emanuelson

Parish Priest

Office Hours: Monday through Friday, 9AM – 2PM

Office Phone: 910-392-4444 Office Fax: 910-392-4905

Fr. Jon’s Mobile Number: 910-685-0080

Office Email: [email protected]

Fr. Jon’s Email: [email protected]

Church Website: www.stnicholaswilmington.org

Find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/StNicholasWilmington

2015 PARISH COUNCIL

CHURCH STAFF

Angelique Skandalakis, Parish Office Administrator

PARISH MINISTRY TEAM

Officers Members

Barbara Reynolds, President John Burgee Debra Rallis

Evangelos Fragos, Vice President Peter Manolukas Nick Saffo

Irene Sotiriou Vogiatzis, Secretary Peter Malahias Maria Stasios

Tina Bostic, Treasurer Emanuel Miliotis

Religious Education…Richard Reynolds, Ministry Chair Communications - Technology Ministries…

Adult Education…Richard Reynolds Alexandros Theodoropolos, Ministry Group Leader

Youth Catechism…Courtney Malahias, Director Webmaster… Alexandros Theodoropolos

Bookstore/Library…Mary Ann Wall Publications…Angelique Skandalakis, Stella McTaggart

Oratorical Festival…Courtney Malahias Technology… Alexandros Theodoropolos

Media/Community Relations…Beth Burgee, Debra

Hellenic Culture…Kitsa Wiersteiner, Ministry Chair Rallis, Alexandros Theodoropolos

Hellenic School…Anestis Logothetis, Acting Director

Romiosini Dance Group… Zaharoula Katsikis Parish Family Life…**Volunteer Needed**

Zoyra Dance Group… Zaharoula Katsikis Parish Family Night…**Volunteer Needed**

Choral…Dr. Michael Rallis Men’s Group…Richard Reynolds

Special Activities… Kitsa Wiersteiner Women’s Group…**Volunteer Needed**

Forever Young…Stella Vallianos

Youth Diakonia…Koula Katsikis, Ministry Chair LOVE…Stella McTaggart, Angelique Skandalakis, and

Kay Skandalakis GOYA…Mary Beth Miliotis, Tina Bostic, Dr. David

Snow, Irene Vogiatzis Outreach & Evangelism…Diane McGowan

HOPE/JOY… Joyce Patsalos, Renée Psilos, Sophia OCF…Fr. Jon, Alexandros Theodoropolos

Brewer, Connie Ronner, Jaime Saffo Hospitality…Ed and Kathleen Mayorga

Community Service…Christina Mount

Liturgical Life… Dr. Michael Rallis, Ministry Chair Parish Care…Pat Poulos, Tina Stamatakis

Liturgical Music… Dr. Michael Rallis

Acolytes…Doug Brown Philoptochos…Thalia Kefalas, Chapter President

Neokoros/Sexton…**Volunteer Needed**

Stewardship…Debra Rallis

mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.stnicholaswilmington.org/

http://www.facebook.com/StNicholasWilmington


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From the Desk of Father Jon

On the Ministry of Parish Care

We have a beautiful ministry in our St. Nicholas parish. Well, in truth we have many beautiful ministries.

But in this article I wish to share with you one of the ministries under the guidance of Outreach & Evangelism

– Our Parish Care Ministry!

Many people do what is mentioned below by nature. At the heart of this ministry is the gospel mes-

sage from Matthew 25:31-40 which in part says, “Then the king will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come,

you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: ‘for I was

hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I

was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ Then

the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give

You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see

You sick, or in prison, and come to You? And the king will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you,

inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’”

The people in our parish care ministry are Kay Skandalakis, Dr. Mary Frangos, Pat Poulos, Jimmy

Stasios, Konstantina Stamatakis, and myself. Together we strive to minister to all those who are sick, suffer-

ing and shut-in. The ministry meets every couple of months to check in with each other on what the needs of

our people are. There are many different things we do for God’s glory and the benefit of the faithful.

Sometimes we call and check on people. Sometimes we visit people at the hospitals, assisted living

homes, nursing homes and their homes. We are always praying for people. Sometimes we write cards.

Sometimes I anoint them with Holy Unction or give them Holy Communion. Many times, just spending time

and speaking with people is all that is needed.

Many times it is a ministry that does not need words, but a prayer filled presence and a hug.

All this ministry is rooted in love for God and for His people and it really knows no bounds. The only

boundary we encounter is the one when people do not let us know about their loved ones needs. I am so

thankful for everyone who does this ministry. I want to leave you with one story that shows the wisdom and

love of Christ bore by a child.

A four year old child whose next door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his

wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman’s yard, climbed up onto his lap, and

just sat there.

When his mother asked him what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, ‘Nothing, I just

helped him cry.’ God is love. May we all become the gospel that many have never read!


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From the Parish Council President

Barbara Reynolds

We weren’t sure it could be done, but this year’s festival was even more successful than last year’s festival

which was a record! We were blessed with beautiful weather and so many tireless volunteers that worked the

week before prepping the food and the pastry, and worked for weeks before selling a record number of sponsor-

ships. Then it all came together on the weekend with all our volunteers working to make our guests have an en-

joyable experience at the festival with delicious food, great dancing by our youth, interesting food demonstra-

tions with cultural explanations, and amazing church tours. Over 750 people attended the church tours. Several

hundred more walked through the church and talked to the tour leaders. The high attendance was thanks to the

encouragement and buttons worn by the other festival workers out front. It is wonderful to see how our church

family comes together to work so hard to make the festival a success sharing our culture and religion. On be-

half of the parish council and the festival committee I would like to thank all of you!

We have more exciting events coming up this summer:

May 31- Pentacost Sunday

June 7 - Sunday School and Greek School graduation

June 13 – Joy / Hope end of the year beach party

June 15 – 19 – Vacation Bible School. All children of Joy & Hope ages are invited to attend.

July 12 – 18 – St. Stephens Camp for GOYA age children.

August 1 – Dormition Fast Begins

August 15 – Dormition of the Theotokos

August 22 – Habitat for Humanity Faith Build

August 22 – CPR Certification Class

SAVE THE DATE - AUGUST 2015

8:00 AM Orthros

9:30 AM Liturgy

June 14 - August 23

SUMMER HOURS


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Outreach & Evangelism Diane McGowan

Christ has Ascended---In Glory

Indeed we have been blessed, as the opportunity rose

via OUR FESTIVAL for what has been described as

“AN AMAZING EXPERIENCE”. It all started with

Father Jon’s vision that we could bring in more peo-

ple to Orthodoxy, who are hungry for the truth. Pa-

rishioner and Ministry leader, Nick Dodge, who

worked inside the church, to assist with visitors, and

the tours, reports the following:

Because of the efforts of ALL festival workers

-- food and beverage servers, attendants, ven-

dors, dancers...everyone -- the church tours

were a tremendous success. By reminding

visitors about church tours, YOU created a

viral response that kept the tour guides very

busy each day.

Over the three days of the Festival, approxi-

mately 800-900 people -- and possibly more --

toured the church and experienced Orthodox

Christianity. More than 100 visitors (more

than 10% of all visitors) requested to be noti-

fied of upcoming Divine Liturgies, Vespers,

and other services and inquiry classes.

The work doesn't end with the festival. Now,

each of us must openly and warmly welcome

each newcomer into the St. Nicholas family as

they begin their "Journey to Orthodoxy."

A special thank you to Father Jon, and Presbytera

Barbara, Father Timothy Yates, Dr. Michael Rallis

(Liturgical Life Leader) and Rick Reynolds (Adult

Education Leader), Deacon Tom and Stacey, our

choir, and all others for their diligence and excellence

in engaging our community in what Orthodoxy truly

is.

SECONDLY, the blessings continue, O & E’s

Community/Charity OUTREACH work continues

and our participation in Habitat for Humanity.

GROUND BREAKING NEWS---HABITAT’S

“ECUMENICAL BUILD PROJECT” submitted by

Christina Mount, Community/Charity Outreach

Leader

“It has been a cool and damp winter, but it is

nice to have the warmth of spring now. We

have the honor of participating in Habitat for

Humanity's Ecumenical Building project.

There will be plenty of opportunity for those

who want to participate to do so. The first

task at hand is the ground breaking on May

30, 2015. Ecumenical Build Address: 1106

North 8th St We are all invited to participate

in the ceremony and a few lucky folks can stay

and participate in the digging of the footings.

For those who are interested in digging the

footings, you must be at least 14 years old.

We only need two or three people for this

event. If you are interested, please feel free to

talk with me on Sunday after church or con-

tact me ( Christina Mount) by phone at 910-

262-4429. This is a fun way to give back to

our community, and no skills are required,

just bring your positive attitude and maybe a

pair of work gloves.”

Finally, we need YOU ALL to be part of the

amazing growth that we are blessed to be experi-

encing here at St. Nicholas. Call Father Jon, or

Diane McGowan, 910 256-8610 to find out how

you can participate.

Stewardship Debra Rallis

Consider…

Weekly Giving

In I Corinthinans 16:2 we read “On the first day of

every week, each one of you should set aside a sum

of money in keeping with his/her income.” Regular

stewardship contributions are easier to manage and

keep the Church and her ministries in our thoughts

and plans. One way to do this is through automatical-

ly scheduled payments sent directly from your bank.

In this way, we offer back to God the “first fruits” of

our labor, realizing that all we possess comes from

Him.

Cheerful Giving

In II Corinthians 9:7 we read “Each person should

give what he/she has decided in his/her heart, not re-

luctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheer-

ful giver.” Consider your weekly expenditures on en-

tertainment, coffee, etc. Keep in mind that the ex-


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penses of the Church increase every year. In order to

grow our ministries and meet our expenses, steward-

ship contributions must also increase each year.

Proportionate Giving

The more we are given, the more is expected of us.

Each steward should determine the percentage of their

income that will be committed to Christ and His

Church.

Stewardship is all around St. Nicholas! There is al-

ways something happening and it simply could not be

done without everyone pulling together and truly

wanting to be together under God’s home. The St.

Nicholas’ community exemplifies unity in many ways

and with it St. Nicholas will continue to be a strong

and vibrant community.

Stewardship giving helps ensure the church’s main

purpose of providing a spiritual environment for all.

As of May 30th, we have received $88,937.76 in stew-

ardship. This is approximately $10, 0627.27 short of

where we need to be by this time. Our annual goal is

$240,000.00 and therefore we need $20,000 a month

to operate. St. Nicholas we can do it! Of course your

time participating in the various ministries (Sunday

school, Love, Joy, GOYA, Forever Young, Choir,

etc.) and the activities they offer sustains the groups.

None of this can be accomplished without your talent

for teaching, singing, coordinating events, publishing,

communication, etc. Looking around St. Nicholas

and all it has to offer it is amazing to see what all we

accomplish as a family and community with your lov-

ing contributions. Thank you for your commitment as

“stewards” of St. Nicholas.

From your Stewardship Committee

Bookstore Mary Ann Wall

The bookstore/library has rescheduled the open house

to September. No firm date has been set but I hope all

parishioner will COME SEE. Thank you. In Christ’s

Service, Mary Ann Wall.

Philoptochos Thalia Kefalas

We want to thank all the ladies that helped, came and

supported our group this year. In whatever way you

gave your time, talent, and treasure, please know – it

made a difference!!

For those members that worked tirelessly at this year’s

festival – THANK YOU! We could not have been a

success without your working at all areas of the festi-

val, from baking, cupping, prep work, selling pastries,

merchandise, cleanup, the list goes on and on, all festi-

val workers who are ladies – thank you from all of

Philoptochos.

Philoptochos is a philanthropic organization open to

ALL ladies 18 years and older. This group spans the

generations and never stops working, even in the sum-

mer.

Please remember to save the date for the annual Au-

gust 15 Panagiri pig picking event with the gift bas-

kets raffle in the evening. For any gift basket ideas

please contact any Board Member of Philoptochos!!

Again, we can’t do this without everyone’s help

throughout the year.

Forever Young Stella Vallianos

Forever Young will meet on Tuesday, June 2nd, 11:00

a.m., at the church. This will be our last meeting be-

fore recessing for the months of July and August. We

will restart in September. Let's all make an effort to

attend. Please bring a covered dish to share with eve-

ryone.

Annual Philoptochos Social, Seapath Towers


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Greek School Anestis Logothetis, Interim Hellenic School Director

The last day of Greek School will be Friday, June 5.

Graduation exercises will be held on Sunday, June 7

after the Divine Liturgy. The Sunday School will also

have their celebration the same day after the Greek

School program. The students will present a short en-

tertaining play and sing some songs. Parishioners are

invited to attend and watch with pride as our young-

sters display what they have learned in their Greek

School classes. A light lunch and refreshments will

be provided.

I would like to personally thank the teachers Evyenis

Karonis, Anastasia Katris, Panyiotis Malahias and

Kitsa Wiersteiner who are there every week. They are

volunteers and have put many long hours in prepara-

tions and in the classes. I also like to thank the par-

ents who always are there to help the school in the

various activities.

Youth Catechism Courtney Malahias

Psalm 113:3

“From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name

of the lord is to be praised.”

Summer is upon us! I love the warmth of the sun on

my face. Easy, breezy, lazy summer

days…………..but not too lazy! We still go to to

church, pray and worship and teach our children. So

many teachable moments in the summer. More time

spent in nature and paying attention to our surround-

ings and the beauty all around us. We are so lucky to

live in this beautiful city and to be a part of the warm

and loving church community we have at St. Nicho-

las.

I would like to give a special shout out to our Ro-

miosini, Zoyra and the Young dancers! I was so

proud as was our community of their tireless ener-

gy and commitment to the festival. Your dancing

was AMAZING!

We had our last catechism class on May 31. What a

fabulous year we all had! When you see a teacher -

give them a hug! It is such a calling to be a teacher

and prepare lessons each week. I am so proud of our

teachers!

Graduation Sunday is upon on us June 7th.

Congratulations to our 6 graduates! Lucas Bostic,

Alex Miliotis, Maria Poulos, Connor Snow, Peter

Vogiatzis and Avery Saffo. We wish them all the

very best in their future endeavors.

Have a fabulous summer!

GOYA

Koula Katsikis, Mary Beth Miliotis, Tina Bostic, David Snow,

Irene Vogiatzis

Our GOYANs wish the best of luck to our high

school graduates - Lucas Bostic, Maria Poulos, Avery

Saffo, Alexandra Miliotis, Connor Snow and Peter

Vogiatzis. May the Lord Jesus Christ guide you all

of your lives. Please stay active in your local OCF.

See Fr Jon for more information.

Additionally we thank our GOYA advisors - Tina

Bostic, Mary Beth Miliotis, David Snow and Irene

Vogiatzis. We also thank our youth advisor for all

her years of service - Koula Katsikis.

We wish a lot of fun to our GOYANs attending the

3rd week of St Stephens camp in July.

On August 22nd we will be offering a CPR certifica-

tion class which will last approximately 5 hours. The

cost for this is $30 per person. Two EMS representa-

tives from New Hanover Regional Medical Center

will be teaching the class in the Church Hall. The

first thirty people who sign up and pay will be guar-

anteed a spot (class size is limited.) You can sign up

or get more information in the office or contact Koula

Katsikis or Dr Pete Manalukas.

Best of luck to our new rising GOYANs! We hope

you and your families stay involved with the church

and youth activities.

LOVE Stella McTaggart, Angelique Skandalakis, and

Kay Skandalakis

I am pleased to announce Angelique Skandalakis and

her mother Kay Skandalakis will be joining me as

Leadership for LOVE. I am excited to welcome them

to the team and look forward to the transition to their

continued leadership when Fiona (and I) leave for

GREEK FESTIVAL 2015

*Staff Photo By Matt Born/StarNews Media

*

*


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Hope/Joy in the Fall. I know they are excited to con-

tinue the success of the group for all of our little

LOVE members and families.

For our June event please join all the kiddos at the

Children’s Museum at 10am on Saturday, June 27 for

MUD DAY!

Have all the kiddos dressed in their bathing suits to

enjoy a fun filled morning of playing in the mud. This

annual event at the Children's Museum is so much

fun! And of course, when your little one gets tired of

playing in the sunny courtyard, you have the rest of

the museum in which to explore & play. Bring a tow-

el & change of clothes with you to the event. A rinse

off station will be provided. Please keep in mind the

regular price of admission for the Museum is still in

effect for this special event. ($9.75 Per Person, infants

under 12 months free)

There is metered parking located on both Orange and

Second Streets, and a public parking deck is located a

short walking distance away. A free trolley runs every

20 minutes from the parking deck to the Museum.

For more information online please go to

https://www.facebook.com/events/420964781421229/

or https://www.facebook.com/events/785108201602337/

or http://www.playwilmington.org/index/page/mud-day-9-

am-12-pm/

Community News

DONATION REQUESTS

Anyone interested in helping donate towards the pur-

chase of an AED device (life saving device) for our

Church, this would be greatly appreciated. Another

$650 is needed. Thank you.

We are looking to add beautiful icons to our church.

Please speak to Fr. Jon, or contact the office about

how to select and donate an icon. Our goal is to have

a full set of icons for the entire liturgical year. The

icons are only $40!

As reported last month, we have started a Hellenic

Center Beautification Fund Drive to update our Hel-

lenic Center. You will notice that the Hellenic Center

and the hallways have been painted. Our other wish

list items are listed below. Donations of any amount

will be greatly appreciated. Please note “Hellenic

Center Building Fund” on your check. If you want

your donation to go to a specific item please note it on

your check. You will be hearing more about the fund

drive in future weeks.

WISH LIST:

Flooring (approx. cost $16,000)

New Banquet Chairs (approx. cost $6,000)

New Ceiling Tile

New Bar Cabinetry

Granite Countertop For Bar Area (have possible donor)

May God bless you!

GREEK FESTIVAL

The Festival Committee wants to send a heartfelt

THANK YOU to everyone for making this year’s

Greek Festival so successful. Thank God for the

beautiful weather and the Wilmington Community for

supporting our Church and our charitable partner,

Good Shepard House.

Thank you to our chairmen Nick Saffo and Lee King.

Thanks to Avery Saffo for his hard work coordinating

staff for the food line and to Kay Skandalakis for co-

ordinating staff for both the pastry tent and the food

line registers. Thank to our youth for all their dance

practices and performances and to their parents for

bringing them to the festival. Thank you to the youth

and adults for all their help at all the booths and drive

thru. Thank you to the Good Shepard Volunteers in

their willingness to help us as well! From planning,

selling ads in the sponsorship book, making food do-

nations, clean up, etc. all the volunteers did a fantastic

job!!

Thank you to all the festival sponsors and advertisers!

We ask all of our parishioners and the community to

use the Commemorative Program as a way to support

these businesses as a way to say THANK YOU for

their sponsorship of our Festival.

Thank you to EVERYONE who was a part of our

most successful festival to date!


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WORDS OF GRATITUDE

THANK YOU FROM

YANNA & TULIO HERNANDEZ:

To Saint Nicholas Greek School and to the entire com-

munity of Saint Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church:

Emilio and I would like to thank you for your prayers,

your love, and generous support during these difficult

times in our family.

Knowing we have the support of people like you made

a difference.

Please know we will never forget your kind gesture.

Thank you again from the bottom of our heart.

Sincerely,

Yanna & Emilio Hernandez

Sympathies and Memorials

We extend our deepest sympathy to the families of

Harry, Louis and William (Bill) Batuyios on the Fall-

ing Asleep in the Lord in the Hope of the Resurrection

of their mother, Frances Fronista Batuyios, on April

30th. Αιωνία της η μνήμη – Everlasting be her

memory!

We extend our deepest sympathy to Vickie Zangwill,

on the passing of her father, Peter Frangos, on May

7th. May his memory be eternal!

We extend our deepest sympathy to Ron Demas and

family on the passing of his father, Nicholas Demas,

who fell asleep in the Lord on May 12th. May his

memory be eternal!

We extend our deepest sympathy to Renee Theopilos

and family on the passing of her husband, Plato, on

May 13th. May his memory be eternal!

We extend our deepest sympathy to the family of John

Batis, who fell asleep in the Lord on May 13th. May

his memory be eternal!

On May 17 a 5-year memorial was held for John Fra-

gos, father of Evangelos Fragos, Sophia Tracy, and

Argie Moe. May his memory be eternal!

On May 10 a 40-day Trisagion was chanted for Stav-

ros Dandulakis, father of Gregory. May his memory

be eternal!

Congratulations

For all the people celebrating their birthday, anniver-

sary, and name day in the months of June and July,

may you have many happy years! Many Happy Years!

Congratulations to Brian Pittman, who was chrismated

in the church on April 11. His sponsor was Angelo

Katris. Na sas zisi!

Congratulations to Katina Lionikis-Perkins, daughter

of Manny & Athanasia Lionikis, who gave birth on

May 22 to Gus (Constantine) James Perkins. Baby

Gus is healthy and strong, and mother and baby are

both home and doing fine.

Congratulations to Stephanie & Graham Harrill on the

baptism of their son, Lukas, on Saturday May 30. Na

Sas Zisi!

We are proud of Peter Vogiatsis for his induction into

the “Eye of The Eagle Service Honor Society” which

is for students with high academics (National Honor

Society & Beta Club Member), athletics, leadership,

and service. Congratulations!

Peter Vogiatsis, 2nd from Right


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JOY/HOPE, April Event


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Documents

June/July 2015 Monthly Newsletter