GOYANS GO CAROLING

On Tueday, December 20th, some forty youth and advisors went door to door singing Christmas carols. Shown below are some of the youngsters as they prepare to carol in one of our parishioners' homes.

ARETE/KYMATA TO HOST GLENDI SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 11

Arete and Kymata, our two senior groups, which have combined into a single group for purposes of FDF, which will take place the following weekend in San Diego, are hosting a Glendi Saturday, February 11. In addition to serving a meal, the group will perform dances from which they will perform at FDF. Look for a flyer which will be available at the pangari. Additional details will appear in the February Herald.

SUNDAY SCHOOL: A WONDERFUL LEARNING COMMUNITY

As we indicated in previous editions of the Herald, Sunday School is in the forefront of our religious educational endeavors. Thanks go to the parents, who encourage their children's participation (we have about 150 enrolled in the program), and to our dedicated team of teachers, who volunteer their time to teach and share our Orthodox Christian Faith. We all enjoyed the Christmas program, so beautifully prepared and presented by our children, our teachers, and, of course, our choir.

For your convenience, a list of our staff for 2005-2006 is as follows:

Pre-Kindergarten
Sophie Makras and Erika Panagiotopoulos

Kindergarten
Elizabeth Yisak and Zaid Tewelde

First Grade
Effie Vellis and Paula Kitses

Second Grade
Elaine Makras

Third/Fourth Grades
Mary Tonas and Annette Chiappari

Fifth/Sixth Grades
Maria Allen and Tina Kontonis

Seventh/Eighth
Gus Vouchilas and Eleni Kalligeros

High School
Caroline Pappajohn and Father Gregory

Principal
Denise Yeilding

The program operates under the supervision of our Dean, Father Stephen, and our religious education committee. Together with classroom instruction, "teaching" Liturgies, projects and programs, as the St. John Oratorical Festival and the Christmas Pageant, our school is a wonderful learning community, where learning, caring and sharing converge, inspired by our Orthodox Christian Faith.

During the course of the year, our young people are given flyers announcing any number of curricular and extra curricular activities. We invite our parents to review them with your children and assist in any way you can, as we endeavor to help your children and one another grow in knowledge of our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ.

TALKS WITH FATHER WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 3

A monthly gathering of our teenagers, entitled "Talks with Father," aims to engage our young people in a discussion of issues of special concern to them and how answers to these concerns can be found in the Bible and in the Life of the Church (e.g. in worship, and in the writings of the Church Fathers).

Our next gathering will take place Wednsesday, Jamuary 3rd. We will meet promptly at 7 p.m. In preparation, our teens are asked to explore the Archdiocese Web Site, goarch.org. and print out one article, short or long, which they have read and which they find interesting enough to share with the group. Later in January, we plan to go to Father Gregory's home for food and a swim (he has an indoor pool).

GOYA ELECTS OFFICERS, NAMES YOUTH ADVISOR

Our growing GOYA, with over 30 members, recently met and elected officers for 2006. They are: Ariana Stratakis, President; Katerina Loufas, Vice President; Katherine Curd, Secretary; Athena Flynn , Corresponding Secretary, Harry Misthos, Treasurer; Erini Misthos, Assistant Treasurer, and Yvonne Chiappari, Administrator. At the same time, Alexandra Kallas was named Youth Advisor, assisting Michael Canellos in overseeing this dynamic youth group. Following this year's crab feed, GOYA's first function is to host an appreciation dinner for the Ladies Philoptochos the evening of March 4th (first Saturday of Souls, and the first in our Lenten series, featuring Dr. Anton Vrame, Director of the PAOI). The dinner, followed by entertainment and bingo for our guests, will help "bond" our Philoptochos with future Philoptochos members, in appreciation for all that the women do for our community, and in support of its many ministries. A meeting of GOYA is scheduled for Thursday, January 5th, at the Cathedral, at 7 p.m.

GREEK SCHOOL

Our Greek School, under the direction of Demetra Armenakis, offers a class for children, grades two and up. The class is held in the second floor conference room Wednesdays, 4 to 6 p.m. We currently have eight students. We are endeavoring to grow the program by proceeding not only with the teaching of the Greek language, but an appreciation for Greek history and culture as well. Won't you consider sending your children to Greek School?

"A CHRISTMAS MESSAGE " by Michael Canellos

It is said that Angels are the heralds of the Lord, celestial messengers who trumpet God’s words and assist us in dire times. It was in early November that I encountered an angel. Not in the physical or spiritual sense, but rather on the HallMark Network watching one of their memorable and heartwarming movies.

The story revolved around a hardworking but overzealous father who in his quest to achieve a "richer" life for his family, inadvertently alienated himself from those he so dearly loved. As Christmas quickly approached, his family’s despondency increased. Lost, isolated, and forlorn, the father prayed for guidance. To his wonderment, an angel appeared proclaiming that the solution to the father’s dilemma could be found in the true gift of Christmas. If the father could discover the gift by Christmas Eve, harmony would be restored. In his revelation, the angel further noted that this most precious gift, could by found in but a single word.

Without hesitation, I immediately answered, "love"! Moments later the father too responded with the word "love". The angel explained, that although all of God’s gifts personify his love, and therefore indeed love is an intricate element of the gift, it is not the true gift of Christmas.

Perplexed, frustrated, and a bit embarrassed, I found myself competing with the movie characters to be the first to answer this enigmatic question. After carefully scrutinizing every distinctive feature of the birth of our Savior; the struggle, the love, the peace and the goodwill, I suddenly realized that through the birth of his son Jesus Christ, God had bestowed upon mankind the most precious gift possible -- eternal life!

Enriched, enlightened, and excited, I immediately felt compelled to somehow humbly honor His magnanimity. I perceived that by working in conjunction with the youth of the Annunciation during the Christmas season, we could perhaps in a small fashion extol His miracle.

Through the love, hard work, and dedication of our Sunday school, our tribute began with the reenactment of the nativity, accompanied by the angelic voices of our youth choir. After a brief genuflection and blessing, the celebration continued with a Lenten lunch (for over 300) served by our teens. We concluded the day’s event with a surprise visit from Santa Claus.

Instilled with the spirit and benevolence of Christmas, we felt compelled to share the Blessing with others who are less fortunate. Working in conjunction with the San Francisco Aids Foundation, our Annunciation Cathedral proceeded to host the "19th Annual Women & Family Holiday Party".

With the collaboration of 28 other Bay Area Organizations we helped to provide an evening of Christmas celebration for approximately 500 women and children living with HIV/AIDS. The majority of the guests were of low-income, marginally housed, and in need of the support of their community. As ambassadors of their parish, our youth truly represented the Annunciation with distinction as they served, cleaned, and passed out gifts.

On Tuesday, December 20th, with approximately 40 parents and youth joyfully participating, we concluded our celebration of life by caroling at the homes of some of our parishioners.

I hope that in a small way we have not only been of service to the community but that we have honored the true meaning of Christmas and have helped to light a candle. It is not with large deeds that the world becomes an enlightened and better place, but rather through many small ones.

Please light a candle.

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January 2006 Herald
Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral