To Hellenic Hope Centre μετά από δύο χρόνια πραγματοποίησε το ετήσιο δείπνο της, τιμώντας αυτή τη φορά πέντε από τους προηγούμενους προέδρους του οργανισμού. Πιο συγκεκριμένα τιμήθηκαν ο κ. Τζιμ Αναστασιάδης, η κα Πανωραία Μπρούμας – Φλώρας, η κα Σούλα Νιτσοτώλης, η κα Κάθυ Μπόζιος και η κα Μπέτυ Βαβούγιας.
Το Have a Heart Luncheon που πραγματοποιήθηκε στην αίθουσα του Crystal Fountain την περασμένη Κυριακή στέφθηκε με επιτυχία. Το «παρών» έδωσαν και πολλά μέλη της παροικίας μας, όπως η κα Έφη Τσάτσου η οποία έκανε και δωρεά. Δωρεά επίσης για το έργο του οργανισμού, το οποίο βοηθά οικογένειες με παιδιά ή άτομα με αναπηρικές ανάγκες, έκανε κι ο κ. Τζίμης Αναστασιάδης, οι κυρίες της Φιλοπτώχου από τον Ιερό Ναό των Αγίων Πάντων, αλλά και το Daughters of Penelope.
Τέλος, αξίζει να διαβάσετε τον λόγο που απηύθυνε ο κ. Νίκος Χατζηγιάννης για την βράβευση του κ. Αναστασιαδή που αποτέλεσε πρόεδρος από το 2012 ως το 2014.

Ο λόγος του κ. Χατζηγιάννη
Good afternoon and thank you for having me here today, as we honor the past five presidents who truly deserve this recognition for their time, dedication, commitment and perseverance for the betterment of the Hellenic Hope Center.
I have the distinct pleasure to present the award to Mr. Jim Anastasiadis, and recognize his contributions while he was president of the Hellenic Hope Center from 2012-2014
Philanthropy – what does it really mean,
English: the desire to promote kindness, welfare and well being of others in generosity of money or time to a cause in which you believe
Greek, φιλανθρωπία- φιλία και αγάπη προς τους ανθρώπους σημαίνει καλοσύνη και ανθρωπιά
Jim and his family embody these meanings for as long as I can remember, and continue today, to unselfishly support their time, money and efforts to causes that are near and dear to their heart such as the Hellenic Hope Center.
During Jim’s term as president, he had the distinct pleasure to work along side a fantastic board, which enabled them to excel in their initiatives.
Sharing the same focus from all the previous boards which was to contribute towards the completion of the Hellenic Hope Center and expand the program attendees from 12 to 29 by the end of his second year.
Jim took every opportunity to promote the Hellenic Hope Centre. He participated, hosted and spoke at many events such as (Greek Community of Toronto functions, Prophets Elias Mississauga events, Cypriot Community Toronto events, HHF, Greek festivals and Golf tournaments) all pertaining to the growth, awareness and partnership development of the Hellenic Hope center.
Jim also appeared on Mr, Kourtessis then radio / television talk show on bi-weekly basis for the successful promotion and to broaden public awareness of the great work that the Hellenic Hope Center does for persons with special needs.
Jim was quoted saying that his most rewarding experiences was interacting with the individuals we support and participated in the weekly swim program where Jim got to swim with the individuals was an experience he will never forget.
During his term as president, Jim and his board organized many successful events and retained many large donations.
$50,000 from each the Gala where Alexandros Notas and Diamantis Dionysiou performed
$80,000 two golf tournaments, which also included the participants for the lunch where they interacted with the golfers
$15,000 and $20,000 from Chairman Brands from our beloved friend, who we lost and will miss — Tom Michalopoulos
$7000 raised from the Scotia Bank Marathon
After the sudden passing of our good friend and fellow board member Tom Andrikopoulos on December 20, 2014, a memorial golf tournament was created in Tom’s honour which donated $12,000 back to the Hellenic Hope Center.
As Jim once said, “he was an amazing human being and he made me stronger and will be missed: a day doesn’t go by without me still thinking about him.
In closing with one Greek comment, pertaining to the measure of a person.
English – the successes of a human are not evaluated from personal gains,, but from how he makes others around him happier and able to attain their dreams.
Greek – Οι επιτυχίες ενός ανθρώπου δεν αξιολογούνται από τα προσωπικά κέρδη, αλλά από το πώς κάνει τους άλλους γύρω του πιο ευτυχισμένους και ικανούς να πραγματοποιήσουν τα όνειρά τους
Thank you to Jim and to his family for your support and constant belief in the cause to ensure that persons with special needs are treated with respect and dignity to which every person is entitled to.
Thanks you.