As we quickly pass through the Christmas season and enter a new year, it is time to pause and think of where weÆve been and where we are going. Our Savior has taught us that faith and good works are necessary to enter the Kingdom of God. For AHEPANS every where, we must keep faith in the example presented to us and faithfully obligate ourselves to achieving good works through our beloved brotherhood.

The year 2001 will see our organization achieving the status of a 501 c.3. charitable organization. This in itself will be a significant achievement brought about by the dedicated efforts of our brothers over many years. Now, however, we must build upon this success with more success. Measurement of this success will rely on our ability to make our 501 c.3 foundation a growing living institution. As we enter a new year think what you can do to build this foundation, and bring your ideas to fruition in 2001.

Happy New Year!

Costa Brown

When James D. Brame, the Assistant Vice President for Small Business Banking of Bank of America, reached into an oversized drum and drew the winning entry, George Houmpvalis of Skokie, Ill., became the $25,000 grand-prize winner of AHEPA's inaugural sweepstakes, held last Saturday, in Washington, D.C. Houmpvalis is a member of AHEPA Chapter 396.

"When we contacted the Houmpvalis residence, we spoke with Mrs. Houmpvalis who at first expressed disbelief and then elation and jubilation at winning the grand prize," Chairman of the Board A. Steve Betzelos said.

Tom Agres, of Broadview, Ill., Anthony Xenakis, of Pittsburgh, Penn., and Anthony Zanetos, of Milliard, Ohio, won prizes of $10,000, $5,000 and $2,500, respectively.

In addition to the four winners, the sweepstakes will ultimately benefit AHEPA's districts and chapters, according to Betzelos, who said chapters will receive $3 and districts will receive $2 for every entry form submitted with a contribution.

"We want the chapters and districts to understand that a project of this magnitude is meant to benefit them as well," he said.

"AHEPA congratulates all the winners of the sweepstakes and thanks everyone who showed their support by submitting their entries," he said. "We also are grateful to our headquarters staff and to Chairman John Zane Argoudelis and his sweepstakes committee, who took the bull by the horns to make this project a reality.

Past Supreme Governor John Zane Argoudelis chaired the sweepstakes committee, which was composed of Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors Franklin Manios, board member and Past Supreme President George P. Gabriel, Supreme Governor Louis G. Atsaves, Past Supreme Governor Nicolaos Trintis, Past Board member Robert Leckrone, Theo Harris, K. Gus Hazifotis, Steve Tsagaris, Thomas N. Pappas, Chris Coroneos, and Dr. Takey Crist.

Best Wishes and CRONIA POLLA to the following Brothers who are celebrating birthdays:

Al Manos 01/01

Chris Pathe 01/07

Tom Foster 01/09

Nick Yphantides 01/19

George Geanoulis 01/24

John Anas 01/28

Greg Chachas 01/29

Happy Anniversary!!! to the following Brothers and their lovely brides who are celebrating wedding anniversaries:

Ted & Fani Kyriacou 01/06

Sam & Petroula Eulmi 01/08

Paul & Patricia Guzik 01/09

Jim & Helen Mellos 01/10

Del & Angel Delagrammaticas 01/22

Meeting Agenda - The following is the meeting agenda for the next Social/General Chapter Meeting, being held at SS. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church's Senior Citizen Center, Tuesday, January 9, 2001:

Christmas Party Committee Report

Greek Independence Committee Report

Scholarship Committeem Report

Old Business

New Business

Good of the Order

General Business Meetings - General Business Meetings are held every third Thursday of the month. The next meeting will be Thursday, January 18, 2001, at Sts. Constantine and Helen Senior Citizen Center at 7:00 p.m. All Officers and appointed officers are expected to attend. Any interested members may attend. Come and see your administrative board at work planning and coordinating for better functions and best events for the membership.

Greek Independence Day Previews -

The playwright Brother Mike Merica is very close to completion of the next play for presentation at our next Greek Independence Day celebration. The theme is depicting the life and heroic adventures of Bubulina, one of the many heroines of the time when Greece won its independence from the Ottoman Empire.

Brother Mike is looking for volunteers as actors for this most colorful presentation. Wont you make yourselves available for auditions in the assemblage of this production? Establish your desire to audition by calling Mike at (760) 631-4444 or (760) 945-1069, you can also e-mail at: micmerica@aol.com.

MEZETHAKIA! - At the last Social/General Chapter Meeting we had ordered a beautiful spread of food and drink for consumption prior to the Program Presentation and Business Meeting. The "Breaking of Bread" was well received and we plan to continue it, however, we must have more members in attendance and it must be supported by member monetary donations and contributions. Please join us at the next meeting and give us your support or to make suggestions in making our meetings better.

Newsletter Entries - Please direct all newsletter announcements for "TA NEA" to the editor: Brother D. A. George, (858) 273-2868, FAX (858) 273-0416 or e-mail: dageo@att.net. All entries must be received by the 20th of each month.

The El Camino Real AHEPA Scholarship Foundation of District #20 invites you and your family members to take advantage of the scholarships made available. The sole purpose of this program is to grant scholarships to worthy students who are members of Sons of Pericles or Maids of Athena of District #20 or whose parents are members of the Order of AHEPA or Daughters of Penelope, living in District #20 and who have been awarded by this Scholarship Foundation less than four (4) times. All completed applications will be evaluated by an impartial panel of administrators/professors from accredited colleges or universities.

To be considered for a scholarship the applicant must:

1. Be a graduating senior entering college in 2001, or currently enrolled in a university or college with a minimum of 12 semester hours working toward an undergraduate degree;

2. Have a Cumulative Grade Point Average of at least 3.0;

3. Complete all pages of the application in their entirety;

4. Provide only one letter of recommendation on official stationery from one of the following:

a. Member of the AHEPA Family;

b. Professor, teacher or counselor; or

c. Member of Clergy.

5. Write an essay of 500 words or less describing any special circumstances which the applicant thinks the panel should take into consideration when evaluating the application, for example:

a. career aspirations

b. honors classes/activities

c. extracurricular/community activities

d. participation in AHEPA Family and church-related activities.

6. Have the school send an official transcript of your high school grades, including class rank and standing;

7. Furnish a completed official Chapter Endorsement (a page of the Application);

8. (For college and university students only) provide all items above plus a transcript of college grades. Applicants of junior status and above need not provide a high school transcript or page 3 of the application.

9. A recipient can receive a scholarship from the El Camino Real Scholarship Foundation only four (4) times.

To be considered, all forms must be postmarked no later than the deadline of March 1, 2001.

Those interested in applying for the District #20 El Camino Real Scholarship Foundation Scholarship may request for applications from the Chapter Secretary, Brother D. A. George, Tel.: (858) 273-2868, Fax: (858) 273-0416, or E-Mail dageo@att.net.

WASHINGTON. - Last month, AHEPA National Housing Corporation, Inc., of Indianapolis, Ind., received $27 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for eight new federally subsidized apartments for low-income senior citizens under HUD's Section 202 Program, according to an announcement by Nick Stratas, the president of the corporation which has the highest achievement record among non-profit groups applying for HUD grants.

According to Stratas, the grant from HUD is the largest AHEPA National Housing has received in its 20-year history and is a testament to the strength and growth of the AHEPA Housing Program.

"We have come a long way. The award from HUD is the culmination of twenty years of hard work by the members of the housing program," said Nick Smymis, CEO and President of AHEPA Management Corp., Inc., the entity that manages AHEPA's housing projects. "it is by far the largest grant AHEPA housing has received from HUD and we are confident this trend will continue in the future.

The eight new projects are slated for development in Bayou La Batre, Ala., 50 units; Montgomery, Ala., 24 units; New Port Richey, Fla. 50 units; Daytona Beach, Fla., 76 units; Canton, Ohio, 42 units; Cincinnati, Ohio, 48 units; Allentown, Pa., 48 units: and Houston, Texas, 66 units.

U.S. Housing and Urban Development Secretary Andrew Cuomo awarded a total of $597 million to non-profit groups similar to AHEPA to create more than 6,500 federally subsidized apartments.

The money,that we awarded today is one way we can give back to those who have given us so much," Cuomo said adding, "Our elderly should never have to worry about being able to afford a safe and decent place to live.

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, some 339 non-profit groups applied for Section 202 assistance and 161 received grants.

AHEPA Supreme President Johnny N. Economy, a member of the Board of Directors for AHEPA One, Inc., a HUD Section 202 housing complex in Atlanta, expressed satisfaction for the latest award.

"I congratulate the AHEPA Housing Corporation on the $27 million grant received from HUD, added Economy. "As is the case in Atlanta, our housing projects throughout the United States help to fulfill one aspect of our organization's mission. They allow the AHEPA family to give back to the entire community in the spirit of philanthropy.

There are 60 AHEPA HUD Section 202 housing projects either in development or completed in the United States.

The AHEPA National Housing Corporation Foundation annually grants profits from its management services arm to 501 (c) 3 charities and organizations as required by law. In 2000, the foundation granted $362,500 to such organizations: Charitable entities have received over $1.3 million from the foundation since its inception.

AHEPA is the largest Greek-American association in the world with chapters in the United States, Canada and Greece and sister chapters in Australia.

It was established in 1922 by visionary Greek-Americans to protect Hellenes from prejudice derived from the KKK and joined with the NAACP and B'nai B'rith to fight discrimination. The mission of the AHEPA family of organizations is to promote the ideals of Hellenism education, philanthropy, civic responsibility and family and individual excellence.

The AHEPA family consists of four organizations: AHEPA, Daughters of Penelope, Sons of Pericles and Maids of Athena.

[For information about the AHEPA National Housing Program, contact AHEPA National Housing Corp., (317) 845-3410, or visit www.ahepahousing.org].

The famous and luxurious Pantages Theater in Los Angeles (named after Alexandros Pantages, the theater tycoon of the 1920's and 30's) has now been' renovated to the tune of $10 million dollars. Built as a movie house in 1930 for the-then extravagant sum of $1.3 million dollars, the theater still sustained its glitter and glamour, but with all the restoration now, with all its brass railings, its ornately reconstructed lobby, its art deco chandelier that stands above the audience, its lush new carpeting and artistically carved, repainted ceiling, it will continue to be one of the world's greatest theater structures.

Pantages was from the island of Andros. He started his career in Klondike, Alaska, in 1910.

He speculated on gold and oil and was successful enough that when he arrived in California he was able to purchase several theaters in the centers of North America's larger cities.

His name became well-known both in the age of vaudeville and at the dawn of the motion picture era.

A farmer in northern Greece discovered what may well be a large Macedonian city, undiscovered for some 2400 years. The ancient town, known as Apollonia,was found buried under a set of farmlands about 28 miles north of Thessaloniki. After a month's digging, excavations have already unearthed a good number of well-preserved artifacts. Apollonia thrived from 400 B.C. until the mid-8th century A.D. Polyxeni Velini, the archeologist in charge of the excavation, estimated that Apollonia housed as many as 10,000 residents, an impressively large city for its time: The diggers began their work when the farmer, Andreas Gaitatzis, found a 2,300 year-old solid gold wreath while plowing his field.

The California Repertory Company opened its 12th season this fall with a heady production of "Ithaka," by renowned Germrln playwright Botho Strauss. The lengthy original play has been reduced to two hours as it retells the tale of Homer's legendary hero, Odysseus, who finally returns to his homeland after 20 years. The dazzling events upon his return - the disguise, the retribution, the discoveries of what time changed, the reunions, the slaughter of the suitors - they are all dramatized in this version of the great epic's last books.

An exhibit I would have liked to attend is that in the Cultural Center at Patras. It has been displaying photographs taken by the peripatetic Greek Nobelist Giorgos Seferis. A photographer as much as a poet, Seferis left behind some 2,500 negatives of photos taken from 1920, when he was just a young student in Paris, until 1971, the last year of his life.

streets, landscapes, faces, vignettes everydayness. I can't help but what degree these frozen moments augment and illuminate his exquisite stanzas.

From records kept in the last 17 years, Greece holds a negative record in the number or people drowned in the sea. On the average, 295 people are drowned in the sea in Greece.

Before the Samina Express disaster, 262 had drowned this year.

In tact, as of February 2000, by a government decree, every crowded beach or seaside had to be guarded by at least one professional lifeguard. This has not been enforced, however, either because of financial reasons or because of that proverbial Hellenic indifference.

We now learn that there are more refugee groups waiting on the opposite shore of Turkey to set sail for "the land of honey." And the Chios authorities wonder how long the island will be able to support such "migrations."

What I find curious, is how these unfortunates find such large sums of money to pay for their transport. Most of us here are under the impression that that kind of money is rare among the common people of Asian and Middle Eastern countries. Which raises questions...

Eurostat, which collects statistics on EU countries, has released a number of interesting figures regarding Greece in relation to its European brethren. Most interestingly, perhaps, Eurostat reports that 97% of Greeks are proud to be Greek, although just 47% are satisfied with their lives and feel that their government is making their lives pleasant. Worth noting. too, is that the Greeks and the Spaniards are the most ardent supporters of Turkey's entry into the European Union. Overall, the rest of the Europeans are 70% against Turkey becoming a member.

According to its figures on poverty among member-nations, Greece and Portugal have the highest percentage of impoverished inhabitants. Eurostat says that 21% of Greeks live under the established poverty level - that's 2.2 million Greeks, of whom some 330,000 are children. The poor in Greece (as in other countries. I suppose) are pensioners, the unemployed and people with illnesses or special needs.

Recent Eurostat figures indicate that 6 out of 10 Greek women are victims of sexual harassment on the job. Although it's not as bad as Spain's reported 84% (yikes!), it is worse than Britain's 47%. The women most likely to be victims are immigrants, divorcees and those who are entering the workforce for the first time.

Finally, immigrants in Greece now number 800,000 - or, about 7.2% of the total population. The figure is lower than that in Germany, where 9% of the population are immigrants(as well as Belgium, where 8.4% are immigrants). Greece's immigrant population, most of which is illegal, has surpassed (as a percentage of the entire population) that of France (6.1%) and Italy (6.5%).

A recent poll sponsored by Eleftherotypia indicated that 91% of Greeks believe that corruption there has increased, with 54% attributing some of the blame to the political parties. On a different note, 60% of Greeks said they agreed with the Church's ID card position, while only 31% claimed to be church-goers. The majority of those, however, are women over the age of 60. The most popular figure in public life was patriarch Bartholomew, followed closely by Archbishop Christodoulos, Mikis Theodorakis and Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki.

O Brother, Where Art Thou, in a film by the always interesting Coen Brothers (Ethan & Joel), is based on and inspired by Homer's "Odyssey." It stars George Clooney, John Turturo, Charles Durning and Holly Hunter. The movie is listed as "a comedy" sad Touchstone/Universal will release it on December 22. Homer as comedy? We'll see... Then again, look what the filmmaking duo did to the otherwise deadeningly mundane locale in "Fargo." In the right hands it appears that just about anything can come off funny.

After you shake hands with a Greek, you would do well to count your fingers," said Turkish politician Mesut Yilmaz. When confronted about it by the media, he explained that he was, of course,joking, that he has been for GrecoTurkish rapprochement long before the earthquakes, and that he has a great deal of respect for the Greek nation.

My response to Mr. Yilmaz would be that a hand that is responsible for so much slaughter over the ages should have some fingers missing.

But then if he really wishes friendship, as he explained, then let's give him back his fingers...

Because he performed transplants of seven organs simultaneously, Dr. Andreas Tzakis has entered the

Guinness Book of World Records. The surgeon is director of the Transplant Section or the University of Miami. He pointed out recently in a lecture given in Athens that the future or transplant surgery depends on human donors and not on animal to human transplants. In Greece, be added, the number or human donors is embarrassingly small.

(Here by permission of THE GREEKAMERICAN)

FILIAS

(The Voice Of Philia)

DAUGHTERS OF PENELOPE

PHILIA, CHAPTER #380

PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE

Dear Sisters,

We will be meeting at the Senior Citizen Center at SS. Constantine and Helen, Tuesday, January 9th. Preparations are now complete we will be going Viejas, Monday, January 15th. Make sure you have made your resevations for this exciting event.

Enjoy the Holidays and it is hoped that you have planned all youre resolutions and activities for the New Year 2001. I look forward to seeing you all at the next meeting, and of coarse at Viejas with the luck of the New Year.

Yours in Theta Pi,

Joanna Pathe

2 packages active dry yeast

1 cup warm water (about 110^o F)

¼ cup sugar

In a bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add sugar; let stand until yeast is foamy.

1 cup milk

¾ cup butter, melted

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt In a saucepan, heat milk; add butter, sugar and salt. 6 large eggs at room temperature

This mixture should not exceed llO^o F.

2 teaspoons crushed anise seed 1½ teaspoons ground masticha

2-3 teaspoons ground mahlepi peel of 1 lemon, grated

peel of 1 orange grated 1¼ teaspoons nutmeg

9-10 cups flour

In large bowl of electric mixer, beat eggs until thick and lemon-colored, about 15 minutes. Add warm milk mixture; continue to beat. Add yeast and one of the flavorings. Beat at low speed, scraping bowl constantly; add 2 cups flour. Mix well; add 1½ cups more flour and beat at high speed 5 minutes. Stir in enough flour to make a soft dough. Turn out onto floured surface and add only enough flour to make a stiff dough and to prevent sticking. Knead 15-20 minutes or until smooth and satiny. Place dough in a greased bowl; turn dough over to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, 2 to 2½ hours. Punch dough down; knead briefly to release air.

Divide dough into two equal portions. From each portion, pinch off two balls of dough about 3 inches in diameter; set aside. Shape the large portions into smooth balls, inserting a silver coin wrapped in aluminum foil into each. Piace on a greased baking sheet or round pan and flatten into a l0-inch round. (Instead of baking a coin in the bread, you can slip one under each Vassilopitta before serving.) Use small balls of dough to form the numbers of the new year in the center of the bread.

Cover and let rise in a warm place until almost doubled, about 30-40 minutes. Brush with a mixture of one egg beaten with one tablespoon water; sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Bake at 350^o F for 30-40 minutes or until loaf is richly browned and sounds hollow when tapped. Makes 2 loaves.

ST. GEORGE GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH OF THE DESERT

74-109 Larrea Street - P.O. Box 4755, Palm Desert, CA 92261

Telephone: (760) 568-9901 Fax: (760) 568-9492

GOLF AND TENNIS

TOURNAMENT - 2001

We are pleased to announce the venues for our Ninth Annual Golf and Tennis Tournament.

Both events will be held in Palm Desert on Friday and Saturday, April 20^th and 21^st.

The Golf Tournament will be held at the all new Marriott Shadow Ridge Resort Course,

and the Tennis Tournament will take place at the Ironwood Country Club.

SCHEDULE

DAY.........TIME	EVENT..........................................PLACE
FRIDAY...12;30 P.M.	STROKE PLAY...............................SHADOW RIDGE COURSE
FRIDAY......6:00 P.M.	OUTDOOR STEAK BARBECUE..............ST. GEORGE CHURCH
SATURDAY.7:30 A.M.	4 MAN SCRAMBLE/BEST BALL........SHADOW RIDGE COURSE
SATURDAY.8:00 A.M.	TENNIS TOURNAMENT..............IRONWOOD COUNTRY CLUB
SATURDAY.12:00 P.M.	BUFFET LUNCH.........................ST. GEORGE CHURCH HALL
SATURDAY...6:00 P.M.	GALA DINNER AND DANCE...MISSION HILLS COUNTRY CLUB

MARK IT ON YOUR CALENDAR TODAY !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! DETAILS TO FOLLOW