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Greek Orthodox Archdiocese 9/11 relief fund distribution procedure


From Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>
Date Thu, 04 Apr 2002 14:05:06 -0800

                    GREEK ORTHODOX ARCHDIOCESE OF AMERICA
    8-10 East 79th St. New York, NY 10021  Tel: (212) 570-3530 Fax: (212)
                                  774-0215
         Web: http://www.goarch.org Email: communications@goarch.org

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release:
April 4, 2002
Contact: Nikki Stephanopoulos

                   ARCHDIOCESE SEPTEMBER 11TH RELIEF FUND
                     DISTRIBUTION PROCEDURE ESTABLISHED

New  York,  NY-  Under the leadership of His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios,
the  committee  members  of  the  Greek  Orthodox  Archdiocese  of  America
"September  11th  Relief  Fund"  recently  met  to  review  a  plan for the
distribution  of  the  monies collected by the Archdiocese and the Dioceses
for  those  tragically  affected by the events of September 11th.  To date,
over  $2,150,000  has  been  raised  with most of that amount restricted to
assisting the children of those lost in the attacks.

The committee agreed to initial distribution of the Fund to the children of
Greek   Orthodox   victims   based   on  a  graduated  scale,  taking  into
consideration  the  age  of  each  child.    It was also decided to present
grants  of  at least $100,000 to the various funds that assist the children
of  firemen,  policemen,  emergency  response  personnel and Port Authority
police who fell in the line of duty.  Additional grants to other funds will
be considered as other donations and uncollected pledges become available.

As  per  an earlier decision of the Committee, no administrative costs will
be  deducted from the Fund and all monies would be distributed to those for
whom  the  Relief  Fund  was  established.   Since  some contributions were
presented  to  His  Eminence  to  be  distributed at his discretion, it was
decided  that those monies could be awarded to the needy elderly parents of
those  lost  and  to  those  individuals  who  may  be  experiencing severe
hardships  as  a  result  of  lost income and other dire circumstances as a
result  of  the tragedy.  Within the World Trade Center and the surrounding
area,  there  were a number of businesses owned by Greek Americans who have
either  lost  their  source  of  livelihood  or  who have been dramatically
impacted economically because of the destruction of the towers.

As  an  expression  of concern and love, a $5000 grant was sent in December
2001  to  each  of  the  Greek Orthodox families, as well as to a number of
Russian  Orthodox  families  who  had  lost  a loved one in the World Trade
Center.   On  Sunday,  December  30,  2001,  the families were invited to a
special Divine Liturgy and Memorial Service celebrated by the Archbishop in
the  Archdiocesan  Chapel  of  St.  Paul.  Following services, His Eminence
hosted a private luncheon at the Archdiocese for those in attendance.

Members of the Committee include His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios, Bishop
Savas (Chancellor), Bishop Andonios who as Director of the Department of
Philanthropy is directly overseeing the Fund, Rev. Alex Karloutsos
(Director of Leadership 100), Mr. Michael Jaharis (Vice-Chair of the
Archdiocesan Council), Mr. Emanuel Demos (Legal Counsel of the
Archdiocese), Mr. Peter Dion (Treasurer) and Mr. Jerry Dimitriou (Executive
Director of Administration).
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