Culture and Education among Greek Americans

Since 1996 Mr. Nicolas Bornozis is the founder, President and CEO of Capital Link, Inc., an international investor relations and financial advisory group. It assists listed companies and capital markets related organizations to develop and maintain access to European and North American investors. Capital Link has offices in New York, London and Athens and is a leader in investor relations for listed shipping companies, U.S. Closed-End Funds and ETFs and international companies accessing the U.S. and European markets.

He also established and managed, Alexander Capital, L.P, a US broker-dealer firm, which developed brokerage and investment banking business in North America with the Greek, Egyptian and Russian markets. Sold the company at the end of 2003 to a group of US investors representing Russian interests. Between 1998 and 2002, he also established and managed Alexander Asset Management, Inc. which handled portfolios invested in the Greek and European equity markets.

Prior to Capital Link (1988-1995), he served as President and CEO of CCF International Finance Corp. (CCF IFC), the US broker/dealer subsidiary of Credit Commercial de France, now part of HSBC, and worked at the International Department of Bankers Trust Company in New York (1982-1984) and then at the Commercial Banking operation of CCF in New York (1985-1987) focusing on the financing of Wall Street firms and shipping.

He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School (1982) and a Law Degree from the University of Athens (1979), in Greece with specialization in commercial and corporate law and is a graduate of Athens College in Greece.

For a period of twelve years he was a Visiting Lecturer on International Banking and Finance at the City University Business School (Department for Shipping Trade and Finance) in London, United Kingdom. Also, he served as Chairman of the Investment Management Committee of the Harvard Business School Club in New York.

His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros (Lambriniadis) of America, Most Honorable Exarch of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, is the eighth Archbishop of America elected since the establishment of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese in 1922. 

Archbishop Elpidophoros was born in 1967 in Bakirköy, Istanbul. He studied at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki — School of Pastoral and Social Theology, from which he graduated in 1991. In 1993, he finished his postgraduate studies at the Philosophical School of the University of Bonn, Germany, submitting a dissertation entitled, “The Brothers Nicholas and John Mesarites: Defenders of Orthodoxy in the Union Negotiations from 1204 to 1214 (in the historical and theological framework of the era).” He was ordained a Deacon in 1994 at the Patriarchal Cathedral and was thereafter appointed as the Codecographer of the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

In 1995, he was appointed Deputy Secretary of the Holy and Sacred Synod. From 1996-1997 he studied at the Theological School of St. John the Damascene in Balamand, Lebanon, where he improved his knowledge of the Arabic language. In 2001, he presented his doctoral dissertation at the Theological School of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki under the title, “The Opposing Stance of Severus of Antioch at the Council of Chalcedon,” earning him a Doctorate of Theology with highest distinction. In 2004, he was invited to Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, MA, where he taught as a visiting professor for one semester.

In March 2005, at the proposal of His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, he was promoted by the Holy and Sacred Synod to the position of Chief Secretary and was ordained to the priesthood by the Ecumenical Patriarch in the Patriarchal Cathedral. In 2009, he submitted two dissertations to the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki — School of Pastoral and Social Theology and was unanimously elected Assistant Professor of Symbolics, Inter-Orthodox Relations and the Ecumenical Movement. The dissertations are entitled: “The Synaxes of the Hierarchy of the Ecumenical Throne (1951-2004)” and “Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses: Historical and Theological Aspects. Text – Translation – Commentary.”  In 2018, he was elected full professor at the same university, a position he held until his election as Archbishop of America.

In March 2011, he was elected Metropolitan of Bursa, and in August of the same year was appointed Abbot of the Holy Patriarchal and Stavropegial Monastery of the Holy Trinity on the island of Halki. He has served as the Orthodox Secretary of the Joint International Commission for the Theological Dialogue between the Orthodox Church and the Lutheran World Federation and as a member of the Patriarchal delegations to the General Assemblies of the Conference of European Churches and the World Council of Churches. He was the Secretary of the Pan-Orthodox Synods in Sofia (1998), Istanbul (2005), Geneva (2006), and Istanbul (2008). He has been an active member of the World Council of Churches serving on its Central Committee and also serving on its Faith and Order Commission since 1996.

On May 11, 2019, he was elected Archbishop of America by the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and was enthroned at the Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in New York City on June 22 of the same year.

Ambassador Alexandra PAPADOPOULOU is the first female Ambassador of Greece to the US. Prior to that, she was also the First Female Permanent Representative of Greece to the European Union and served in other important positions, such as Head of the Diplomatic Cabinet of the Prime Minister, Director General for European Affairs/in charge of the Greek Presidency of the EU in 2014, Head of the Greek Liaison Office in Skopje and Deputy Permanent Representative of Greece to the United Nations.

She also served as Head of the European Union Rule of Law Mission (EULEX) in Kosovo.

Ambassador Papadopoulou holds a Law Degree from the University of Athens and a Master’s Degree in International Relations/International Law from the University of Pennsylvania (Fulbright Scholar).

Evangelos M. Marinakis is the Founder and Chairman of Capital Maritime Trading Corp. He is one of the leading shipowners in the maritime industry. Capital Maritime and its affiliated companies operate a total fleet of 98 ships with an overall tonnage of c.a. 10.5 million tonnes (dwt), having consistently invested in the tanker, container, LNG and dry bulk segments over the years.

Since 2010 Mr. Marinakis has been included annually in the shipping industry British publication Lloyd's List "One Hundred Most Influential People in the Shipping Industry" list, ranking 59th in 2020, 2019 and 2018, 66th in 2017, 61st in 2016, 65th in 2015, 67th in 2014, 73rd in 2013, 84th in 2012, 84th in 2011, 88th in 2010. In 2017 Evangelos was voted "Greek Shipping Personality of the Year" at the Lloyd's List Greek Awards.

Since the summer of 2010, Mr. Marinakis is the owner of the most successful and most popular football club in Greece, Olympiacos FC. Under his leadership, Olympiacos won eight championships and the highest-ranking position (21st) in Europe in Olympiacos’ history.

Ιn 2014, his passion for his home city of Piraeus led him to get involved in local civil life. Together with the current Mayor of Piraeus, Yiannis Moralis, they founded the independent electoral alliance called "Piraeus Winner", which contested and won the consecutive municipal elections of 2014 and 2019. Mr. Marinakis was voted first member of the City Council with 14,010 and 15,816 votes respectively - record votes in the history of local council elections.

In 2017, Mr. Marinakis broadened his sporting activities further when he became the majority owner of the most historic English football club, Nottingham Forest FC.

Evangelos Marinakis is also active in the mass media sector, as a shareholder of Alter Ego Media S.A. which is publishing ‘Ta Nea’ and ‘To Vima’, two of Greece’s most authoritative and top-selling newspapers, as well as magazines, such as ‘Mommy’, ‘Gefsignostis’, ‘Vita’, ‘VimaGazino’ and operates Greece’s most popular internet portal ‘in.gr’. Alter Ego Media also operates and broadcasts TV channel ‘One Channel’ on the internet and on Nova and Cosmote satellite platforms since May 2019, and 'MEGA' TV station on Greek free terrestrial television since February 2020.

Besides his business and sporting interests, Mr. Marinakis also actively supports UNICEF and a number of other charitable causes both in Greece and around the world.

Mr. Marinakis was born in 1967 in the Greek port city of Piraeus. He is the son of Miltiadis Marinakis, a shipowner and politician from Crete. His mother is Irene Karakatsani, whose family hail from the Pontus region and descend from the prominent Ypsilantis family. Throughout his life, he has been a strong supporter of actions to commemorate the victims of the genocide of the Greeks of Pontus, a lesser known tragedy in which around 350,000 Greeks perished.

Evangelos Marinakis is married to Athanasia Kassioti and they have four children.

Yiorgos Anagnostou, the Miltiadis Marinakis Professor of Modern Greek Language and Culture at the Ohio State University, has taught Greek and Greek American courses since 2000. He is the author of one book, one co-edited volume, and an extensive corpus of articles and book chapters on a broad range of subjects, including film, documentary, ethnography, folklore, literature, history, sociology, and public humanities. He is the editor of the online journal Ergon: Greek American Arts and Letters. He has organized two Modern Greek Studies symposia and writes regularly for the Greek and Greek American media.

Gregory Jusdanis, Distinguished Humanities Professor at the Ohio State University, has taught Greek and Comparative literature for close to thirty-five years.  The author of five books covering topics from Greek literature, aesthetics, nationalism, to friendship, he has been awarded many national fellowships and has lectured and taught courses around the world. 

John Calamos is Chairman and Global Chief Investment Officer of Calamos Investments, the firm he founded in 1977. An industry pioneer, Calamos launched one of the first convertible funds (1985) and one of the first liquid alternative funds (1990), reflecting a focus on innovation that continues to this day. Mr. Calamos has built a reputation for using investment techniques to control risk, preserve capital and build wealth for clients over the long term. With over 50 years of industry experience, he is a frequent speaker at conferences worldwide, appears regularly on major media outlets and has authored two books.

Calamos actively supports educational institutions and Hellenic organizations, serving as a member of NHS, Leadership 100, THI and Friends of St. Nicholas. Additionally, he is Chairman of the National Hellenic Museum in Chicago where it is the mission of the NHM to share the legacy of Hellenism, preserve the rich stories of Greek heritage and honor the many contributions of Greek immigrants to other cultures.

Mr. Calamos received a B.A. in Economics and an M.B.A. in Finance from Illinois Tech, where he established Endowed Chairs in Philosophy and Business and is a member of the Board. He received an Honorary Doctorate from Hellenic College Holy Cross.

Calamos also served in the U.S. Air Force. His career included five years of active duty flying B-52 bombers and twelve years in the Reserves flying A-37 jet fighters. He retired a Major.  

Calamos has been honored for his philanthropy by the Pan Arcadian Federation of America and AHEPA. He was inducted as an Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate with the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle in 2015. In Calamos’ honor, for his service as a Vietnam veteran, the Washington Oxi Day Foundation established the Calamos Service Award.  

Drake is President of Marwick Associates, a real estate investment and development company located in Lexington, Massachusetts. Marwick is the real estate arm of a family owned privately held investment company. He is also active in the Behrakis Foundation, the family’s philanthropic vehicle. Prior to establishing Marwick, Mr. Behrakis held various positions with Muro Pharmaceutical, Inc. and the Gillette Company. He has a bachelor’s degree in Finance from Boston College and an MBA from Northeastern University. 

His engagement as both a volunteer and as a donor has expanded throughout the years. He serves as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of The National Hellenic Society and is on the Board of Directors for The Hellenic Initiative, Boston College, the American College of Greece, Hellenic College/Holy Cross, Delphi Economic Forum and The Leadership 100 Endowment Fund. He is also a Board of Overseer at Brigham & Woman’s Hospital and is invested into the Order of St. Andrew.

In 2015 he was the recipient of the Boston College Distinguished Volunteer Award. Prior commitments and involvements include a member of the State of Massachusetts Economic Assistance Coordinating Council; Perkins School for the Blind; Sudbury Youth Basketball; The Lowell Plan; Saints Memorial Medical Center and Fordham University.

Mr. Behrakis resides with his wife and three children and dog, Lola, in Sudbury, Massachusetts. His personal interests include traveling, golf, skiing, and wine collecting.

Robert A. Buhler was born and raised in Racine, WI and earned his B.S. and MBA degrees from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.  In 1997, he purchased Open Pantry Food Marts of WI, Inc. a convenience store company founded by Robert’s father. He continues to serve as President and CEO, and also runs E&K Land, LLC, a real estate investment holding company. Robert has served as a member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Convenience Stores.  He has been a spokesman to the U.S. Congress on industry issues, and has been a featured speaker at national industry meetings and conferences.

Since October of 2015 Robert has served as Chairman of the PanHellenic Scholarship Foundation, a national foundation that provides 40 scholarships and educational programs, annually, to Greek American college students who excel in their studies and maintain Hellenic values. Prior to becoming Chairman, Robert served as Vice-Chair and Board Member of the PanHellenic under the leadership of its Founder, the late Chris P. Tomaras.

Robert is passionate about the Greek Orthodox Church, college education, and research for the cure of Multiple Sclerosis. For almost 30 years Robert has served on the Parish Councils of Chicagoland Greek Orthodox churches. He is also a member of Leadership 100, an Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and a lifetime member of the Hellenic American Women’s Council. Since 2002 he has been a Trustee of the Wisconsin Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and has sponsored MS Walks for 20 consecutive years.

George G Horiates is the Supreme President of the Order of AHEPA. The Order of AHEPA is the largest and most influential Greek American organization for the issues of the diaspora. AHEPA has over five hundred chapters throughout the United States and Canada, Greece, Cyprus and throughout Europe.  AHEPA's membership has for almost 100 years promoted the American Hellenic ideals. It promotes Western values that are rooted in the ideals of ancient Greece. 

From advocacy for Hellenic issues, scholarships for college and post graduate students, to assisting Veterans and a host of programs domestically and abroad only AHEPA and its affiliates, the Daughters of Penelope, Sons of Pericles and Maids of Athena can claim. AHEPA's contributions to the Greek American experience has been recognized by most organizations, and government officials. 

Mr. Horiates serves the highest office of the organization. His aim is to further educate Greek Americans, and their friends, on the necessity of joining AHEPA. 

Artemis Leontis is C.P. Cavafy Professor of Modern Greek and Comparative Literature, Director of the Modern Greek Program, and Chair of the Department of Classical Studies at the University of Michigan. A third-generation Greek American, she researches and teaches aspects of Hellenism in modernity and directs the Modern Greek Program. She earned her Ph.D. in Comparative Studies at Ohio State University. Her books are: Topographies of Hellenism: Mapping the Homeland (1995, Τοπογραφίες του Ελληνισμού, 1998); Culture and Customs of Greece (2009); and Eva Palmer Sikelianos: A Life in Ruins (2019). Edited books are Greece; A Travelers' Literary Companion (1997), an anthology of 24 stories by Greek writers introducing readers to the landscapes of Greece through Greek perspectives; and “What these Ithakas mean…”  Readings in Cavafy—«Η Ιθάκες τί σημάινουν»: Αναγνώσεις στον Καβάφη (2002). She curated the exhibit “Cavafy's World” at the Kelsey Museum of Archaeology in 2002. She is currently Vice President of the Modern Greek Studies Association.

Nick Larigakis, Alexandria, Va., became president & chief executive  officer of the American Hellenic Institute (AHI), a non-profit Greek American public policy center, in January 1, 2011.  He has held different positions with the AHI since joining the organization in 1987.  He has been with the AHI for 34 years.  In this capacity, he manages the day-to-day operations of AHI and its affiliated organizations. He directs all aspects of strategic planning, policy analysis, public affairs programming, government  relations, financial development, and media communications. During his tenure, Larigakis has organized more than 80 legislative conferences, two trade conferences on “Doing Business in Greece,” Seventeen conferences on the Future of Hellenism in America (2002-2018),  a number of congressional fact finding delegations to Greece, and created the very successful, annual, AHI College Foreign Policy Study Program to Greece and Cyprus for Greek American students

Larigakis’ responsibilities at AHI have included working with the U.S. Congress on U.S.-Greece-Cyprus relations.  He regularly travels throughout the U.S. to inform the public about AHI’s policy issues and other aspects of its mission.  He has testified numerous times before Congressional Appropriations committees on foreign aid policy.  He is  a frequent visitor to Greece and Cyprus where he regularly meets with Greek and Cypriot government officials.  As a result, he is regularly interviewed by mainstream, Greek-American, Greek, and Cypriot  media outlets on issues affecting U.S. relations with Greece and Cyprus, including the New York Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, ERT TV, H Kathimerini, etc.. He has been published in various Greek American newspapers, including the National Herald, Greek News, Hellenic Chronicle, Hellenic Voice and Hellenic News of America. In addition, he has had numerous “Letters to the Editor” published in the Washington Times and the Washington Post.   During Greece’s economic crisis, Larigakis was also interviewed by Chinese and German media outlets.

Prior to AHI, he worked at the National League of Families for POW/MIA’s from Southeast Asia where he assisted in the coordination of the organization’s grass roots network. 

For his work in support of Hellenic ideals and values, and for his strong advocacy in the promotion of U.S. relations with Greece and Cyprus, Larigakis has been honored numerous times. In 2019, the Greek Minister of National Defense, bestowed upon him the Medal of "Honour and Valour” for his "distinguished services to the Hellenic Armed Forces and the Nation" and for "exceptional service and support in promoting the United States-Greece relationship." In 2015, he received the St. Katherine Community Service Award in Falls Church, VA, the “Medal” of the Hellenic Parliament (2011), the Inaugural AHEPA Outstanding Public Advocacy Award (2012),  the 2007 Hellenic News of America Award, the 2008 Society of the Argonauts Award.  In 2019 he was the Grand Marshal of the Baltimore Greek Independence Day parade.  The Greek Independence Day Committee of Tarpon Springs, Florida, has honored him as an Honorary Grand Marshal of the 2001, 2009 parades, and Grand Marshal in 2017.  And he was the Honorary Grand Marshal of the 2012 Philadelphia Greek Independence Day parade. He has also been recognized with an honorary award from the Hellenic National Defense General Staff, and in 2015.

Larigakis is a member of AHEPA Chapter 438, Arlington, Va.,  He has served  his parish of St. Katherine Greek Orthodox Church in Falls Church, Va., in many capacities, including its Parish Council (2000-2002; 2004 – 2007; & 2012 -2018 ), Vice-President 2015 and 2017, and  he has organized numerous events to raise funds for his church. He currently also serves on the Board of Directors of the Diabetes Research & Wellness Foundation, the American Hellenic Institute (AHI), AHI Foundation,  and is on the US Board of Trustees of the American Community Schools of Athens.

He has traveled to forty-two U.S. States and twenty-three countries.

Larigakis received his B.A. in Political Science from the College of New Jersey, and did post graduate work in International Affairs at the American University in Washington, D.C. 

In 2003, Larigakis was invested an Archon in the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.  This is the highest lay award presented within the Orthodox Church.

During the historic 2004 Athens Olympic Games he served as a volunteer assigned to “Protocol” duties at the Olympic Indoor Hall. 

Larigakis is from the island of Skopelos, Greece and has a daughter, Panayiota, and a grand son, Socrates.