NEWS

September 28, 2022
Greek Education Department provided us with an amazing smart board for the kids of our new Greek School.
 
How difficult is to change the bulbs at St. Spyridon?
 
 

September 25, 2022
Coffee hour is back. Our community is gathered together again after the end of summer.
 
September 14, 2022
St. Spyridon community celebrated the feast of the Elevation of the Holy and Life-giving Cross.
 
 

August 28, 2022
We welcome Elizabeth Aivazis to the Orthodox Faith and the Saint Spyridon Church family.
 
Happy Birthday to our protopsaltis Panagiotis Zagaliotis. May God grant him years of wonderful voice chanting service!
 
 

August 24, 2022
Congratulations to Manolis & Evdokia Anastasiou, the proud parents of Achileas-Iakovos who received the 40 days blessing.
 


August 14, 2022
We welcome Isidora Igorova to the Orthodox Faith and the Saint Spyridon Church family.
 
 

July 10, 2022

Fathers Loukas hieromonk and Pachomios deacon from the Holy Monastery of Xenophon joined Father Gregory for the Sunday Divine Liturgy. We celebrated Father Gregory Stamkopoulos' Birthday from July 7.

 
 

June 26, 2022
Gratuation of our Sunday and Greek Schools. Congratulations of our senior Evdokiya Tsekas.
 
Our new Parish Council was sworn.

President: Vickie Adams

Vice President: Lydia Vagelos-Callimanis

Treasurer: Spyridoula Tsoukala

Assistant Treasurer: John Psaltos

Secretary: Effie Drake

Members:

John Apostolos

Nick Chrysantem

Nikita Drakotos

Dino Diakolios

Gus Klostri 

Jerry Tsekas

 
 

June 14, 2022
Our Ladies Philoptochos prepared 900 Koulourakia for the Clergy- Laity Conference.
 
 
 

June 5, 2022
St. Spyridon parish took part to the Greek Independence Day Parade 2022.
 

May 15, 2022
We enjoyed the Centenial Celebrations of our AHEPA charter. George Papaeleas Charter 367 of Washington Heights.
 

May 8, 2022
We congratulated our Mother of the year Fanny Triantafyllopoulos!
 
 

April 24, 2022, Holy Easter
His Eminence Metropolitan Evangelos of Sardeis presided during the Easter Liturgy and the Agape Vespers on Easter Sunday.
 
Our Ladies of Kali Parea celebrating the Holy Easter with Easter red eggs.
 

April 22, 2022, Holy Friday
Our beautiful Epitaphios is ready.
 
 

April 21, 2022, Holy Thursday
Service of the Twelve Gospels with His Eminence Evangelos of Sardeis. Preparations of Holy Friday Epitaphios and dying the Easter red eggs.
 
 

April 17, 2022, Palm Sunday
We are pleased to announce the bells have been installed and we are now enjoying the beautiful sounds echoing throughout the neighborhood.
 
Palm Sunday Luncheon with decorations for the services.
 

April 10, 2022
On April 10th Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt we were very pleased to welcome the V. Rev. Archimandrite Nektarios Papazafiropoulos who is the Chancellor of Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.
 
Our Ladies of Philoptochos and other volunteers made the crosses for coming Palm Sunday.
 

April 3, 2022
We welcome Jacob Allely to the Orthodox Faith and the Saint Spyridon Church family!
 
 

March 27, 2022
We celebrated and venerated the Holy and Lifefiving Cross of our Lord. 

March 7, 2022
Fr. Elias Pappas from Holy Trinity Cathedral, NYC served for the Kathara Deftera Church Efchelaio. After the service our Ladies of Philoptochos offered the traditional lenting bean shoup (phasolada).
 

March 6, 2022
His Eminence, Metropolitan Evangelos of Sardes served on Forgiveness Sunday (Cheesefare)

February 26, 2022
His Eminence, Metropolitan Evangelos of Sardes prays for the repose parishioners for the first Saturday of the Souls at Saint Spyridon. Alexandros Patsalos assists him in the altar.
 

 
February 13, 2022
The Ladies Philoptochos Valentine's Day Lunch

 
January 9, 2022
Welcoming of our new presiding priest Fr. Gregory Stamkopoulos!

 
December 19, 2021
Thank you to the wonderful children of our Sunday School for a great Christmas Show performance.  Merry Christmas to all!

December 4, 2021
Our Annual Community Christmas Tree Decorating! It was great to see a mix of our Sunday School children, Girl Scouts, and some Young Adults join together for a festive day filled with the Christmas spirit, carols and decorations!
  

December 4, 2021
Our Annual Holiday Season Feeding the Homeless initiative is complete. Glory to God! Members of our Young Adults joined the Philoptochos to help cook and pack over 80 meals for the homeless of the Washington Heights area! It's beautiful when ministries come together for a common goal, especially to help those in need. God bless all our volunteers!
   

November 24, 2021
So happy that part of our Turkey Drive helped the Fifth Ave Presbyterian Church offer over 120 hot meals to people in need on the eve of Thanksgiving! Give thanks to the Lord for He is good! Our Young Adults Hot Meals initiative is coming up on Dec. 4!
   

November 23, 2021
Greek Language School and Byzantine Music classes at St. Spyridon. Glory to God for our growing ministries.
   

November 7, 2021
We celebrated the Protokyriako (the First Sunday of November), an ecclesiastical custom from Corfu which commemorates the miracle of Saint Spyridon when he saved the island from the plague. Some of our Sunday School children also honored the heroes of 1940 as part of their OXI Day celebration, while our parishioners enjoyed their time of fellowship. Glory to God for all things!
   

Blessed Feast of the Transfiguration of our Lord 2021!
We had the pleasure to welcome Fr. Pablo Lopez and Presvytera Anna from Argentina to our parish. It was a blessing to serve today's Divine Liturgy with Fr. Pablo and we wish him many years!  Χρόνια πολλά σε όλους με την ευλογίες του Σωτήρος Χριστού μας!
  

Our young helpers during tonight's Paraklesis service brightened our worship. God bless all our children and may our Panagia keep them under Her loving care.
 

Young Adult Professionals visit Saint Nektarios Monastery 2021

Our Saint Spyridon Young Adults Professionals organized a trip, a spiritual pilgrimage, to Saint Nektarios Monastery in Roscoe, NY. They enjoyed a day at the monastery filled with friends, fellowship, and faith. Glory to God for all things! 

May the intercessions of Saint Nektarios be with us all!


Sunday School Graduation 2021!!!

Congratulations to our remarkable students, teachers, parents, and families on a beautiful Sunday School year! May God always bless and guide our children. We are grateful for you!

Community Palm Making 2021

Thank you to our beloved St. Spyridon family for helping to make Palm Crosses and for decorating our beautiful Church for Palm Sunday!


Palm Sunday 2021

Blessed Palm Sunday with His Eminence Metropolitan Evangelos of Sardes


Sunday of Orthodoxy 2021 - Visit of His Eminence Metropolitan Evangelos of Sardes

Our community was honored and blessed to celebrate the triumph of our faith, the Sunday of Orthodoxy, with His Eminence Metropolitan Evangelos of Sardes who graced us with his presence on this glorious day. May God grant him many blessed years!

  


Sunday, March 21, 2021

2021 St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival

Our community representative is Evdokiya Tsekas of the Senior Division. Congratulations!!!

 


November 6 & 7, 2020:

Our Greek Fest is underway!!! We began with an Agiasmo, our souvlakia are on the grill, our delicious food is ready to go and we are waiting for you! Come and join us!


November 5, 2020:

Our Ladies Philoptochos working tirelessly in preparation for our Grab-n-Go Greek Fest this weekend! We thank them for their love and dedication! Please come out and support our community! We look forward to seeing you!


November 1, 2020:

Today we had our OXI Day Doxology and Celebration following the Divine Liturgy. We came together as a community to honor the courage and sacrifices of our ancestors and remember the fallen heroes of Greece. Our voices echoed in our beautiful Church as we loudly sung our Greek National Anthem. Our Ladies Philoptochos also presented a scholarship to a dedicated high school graduate of our community, Frederiki Tsekas, for all her hard work and support of our community. Glory to God for all things! Ζήτω η Ελλάδα μας!!!

October 4, 2020:

Sunday School began today with a beautiful Agiasmos service. Our children prayed with us during the Divine Liturgy and received the blessing of our Lord, our Panagia, and our patron saint, St. Spyridon for a productive school year. It was so wonderful to see many of our children brighten our church and our classrooms again. Our community is blessed with dedicated Sunday School teachers, faithful parents, and exceptional students who are eager to learn about Christ. May God continue to bless all who diligently serve our Sunday Scool and may He enlighten and protect our children.

Wishing everyone a blessed and safe school year!

September 27, 2020:

A beautiful, fun, and relaxing picnic with our Young Adult Professionals group. So blessed to be with such wonderful and faithful young adults. We look forward to a great year of ministry together.


September 27, 2020:

Visit of His Grace Bishop Apostolos of Medeia

https://www.anamniseis.net/i-koinotita-tou-agiou-spiridona-timise-tin-mnimi-ton-proin-proedron-kai-melon/?fbclid=IwAR2CXhVKt9w6rFg3ZrnKcuhoolxCdIvCliQqFY6FSJ4WKDEJTDbTxN0ycTw


September 14, 2020:

St. Spyridon celebrates the Exaltation of the Venerable and Life-Giving Holy Cross.

   


September 6, 2020: Νέα εποχή για τον Άγιο Σπυρίδωνα με τον διορισμό του π. Γεωργίου Καζούλη

Read it here: https://www.anamniseis.net/nea-epohi-gia-ton-agio-spiridona-me-ton-diorismo-tou-p-georgiou-kazouli/


September 1, 2020: Happy Ecclesiastical New Year from our parish, St. Spyridon Greek Orthodox Church! We began our first day with Agiasmos and we welcomed Fr. George and Presvytera Dimitra. We look forward to working together with everyone to spread the word of Christ and help this historic community prosper and grow. May you have a blessed month and a spiritually prosperous new year! Καλό μήνα και ευλογημένο το εκκλησιαστικό έτος!


August 10, 2020: Archbishop Elpidophoros of America delivers the sermon at St. Spyridon Paraklesis.


December 17, 2018: Our Coat Drive is now over. Thank you all for your generosity! We were able to collect over 50 coats that will be given to One Warm Coat.

We wish you all a Merry and Blessed Christmas, as well as a Happy and Healthy New Year!


December 15, 2018:  Article in the Greek News 

Read it here in English:  "Archbishop Demetrios in the name of Saint Spyridon in Manhattan"

Read it here in Greek:  "Ο Αρχιεπίσκοπος Δημήτριος στα ονομαστήρια του Αγίου Σπυρίδωνα στο Μανχάταν"


November 19, 2018: Today, volunteers from the Emmaus House Harlem came and picked up the 45 turkeys our community was able to collect. A special thank you to our Parish Council (they offered 20 turkeys) and to all the people who contributed to our Thanksgiving donation project.


October 21, 2018:  Article in the Greek News 

Read it here in English:  "Blessing of Sacred Icons in the Historical Community of Saint Spyridon"

Read it here in Greek:  "Καθαγιασμός των ιερών εικόνων στην ιστορική κοινότητα του Αγίου Σπυρίδωνα"


October 15, 2018:  Article in Ethnikos Kiris 

Read it here in English:  "Celebration of Iconography Restoration of Saint Spyridon Church"

Read it here in Greek:  "Εορτασμός αποκατάστασης αγιογράφησης του Ιερού Ναού Αγίου Σπυρίδωνος"


October 14, 2018: Video of the Restoration Celebration


September 19, 2018:  Article in the Manhattan Times 

Read it here:  "The Rebirth of St. Spyridon"


Saint Spyridon Church is highlighted in the July-August 2018 issue of the Orthodox Observer!

Read it here:  "Inner-City Church, Once the Archdiocese's Largest, Adapting to 21st Century"


May 3, 2018: Thank you to Mr. Dionysios Mamalos and CorfuTV for this wonderful video about our church's Restoration Project.


March 29, 2018: Exciting News... the scaffolding has come down to reveal the most magnificent iconography at Saint Spyridon Church. We invite you to come and witness the beauty of our church. It will leave you speechless!!!

Saint Spyridon Church


November 12, 2017: 86th Anniversary & Parochial School Reunion 


September 2017: Read about the restoration on page 22 of the June-July-Aug 2017 issue of the Orthodox Observer:

Orthodox Observer Sept 2017


December 24, 2017 CHRISTMAS PAGEANT: The Sunday School children wrote and performed in a wonderful Christmas ProgramView the photos here!


June 18, 2017:  CONGRATULATIONS to our Sunday School children as we celebrate the end of another year. We're so proud of you and we're looking forward to seeing you all again in September!


May 21, 2017:  The Parish Council is pleased to announce the appointment of Father Nicolas Kazarian as our full time priest beginning June 1st, 2017.

Please join us in welcoming Father and his family to our Saint Spyridon Community.


H GynaikaMay 7, 2017:  The National Herald honored our Parish Council President, Mrs. Lydia Vagelos-Callimanis, in the April edition of the monthly magazine Γυναίκα. This is a well deserved honor for Lydia and a great opportunity to highlight the restoration project of our beautiful church.

(Γυναίκα - Greek version) (Γυναίκα - English version


April 16, 2017:  A special THANK YOU to the following businesses, organizations and individuals for their donations towards our Holy Week services:

  • Antony's Florist - for the Palms Donation
  • Mrs. Bessie Bartzos - for the decoration of the Icon of the Resurrection
  • Columbia Florist - for the Lillies to decorate our church
  • Mr. Gus Klostri - for the Priest's Anastasi Lambada
  • Mr. and Mrs. Petros Klostri - for the Rose Water, Olive Oil and Holy Communion Wine
  • Philoptochos Ladies - for the decoration of the Epitaphios
  • Rainbow Florist, Mr. Harry Nicolaou - for the Icon of the Bridegroom, the rose petals and the bay leaves.
  • Skokos Flower Shop - for the Palms Donation
  • Mr. and Mrs. Pericles Tsumas - for the white carnations for the angels.
  • Mr. Avram Ververis, Mr. Nick Siarres and Mr. Miltiades Vlachos - for the Easter Eggs

March 5, 2017:  The Parish Council is pleased to announce that the restoration of our beautiful church has begun!  The iconographer has started with the icons of Saint Spyridon and Saint Gerasimos which were generously donated by two parishioners.  We are in the process of having a brochure printed which will allow everyone to see the opportunities available to help with this wonderful project.  This week, we cleaned out the choir loft.  We had a garbage truck come and we loaded it up.  A big thank you to John Apostolos, Christos and Luz for helping with this project.


February 27, 2017:  Kathara Deftera was a beautiful start to the Lenten season.  Led by Meropi Nikolakakos, Philoptochos board members and wonderful general members prepared a delicious Lenten Meal which was enjoyed by all.  Joining us was Father George Kolios of St. George and St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church at 103rd Street and Lexington Avenue.


February 19, 2017:  Jennifer Constatin, President of the Direct Diocesan Board of Philoptochos attended our church, visited with us during coffee hour and participated in the Ladies Philoptochos Society board meeting.  She was impressed with the work of our Philoptochos chapter and encouraged us to broaden our charitable efforts to include a variety of different efforts such as donating phone cards to servicemen and sponsoring a coat drive next year.  She is a gifted leader and a great help to our chapter always taking our calls and offering excellent suggestions.  Members of the Philoptochos Board generously contributed new clothes, cash cards and toiletries for Project Hope.  Project Hope is a Philoptochos district campaign to assist battered and trafficked women currently in a shelter by providing them with basic necessities to leave the shelter and hopefully start a better life.


February 12, 2017:  The Ladies Philoptochos Society Valentine’s Day Luncheon was a successful event. In spite of the severe weather we hosted approximately 100 guests.  A light lunch and dessert were offered and all the ladies and girls received red carnations.  Available for the taking was information about heart health in both English and Greek, thanks to Spyridoula who once again provided the translation.