ΚΑΛΩΣ ΗΛΘΑΤΕ! Kalos ilthate! Welcome!
Welcome to the Global Greek World - a world of Greek-Somethings which stretches from Auckland to Zanzibar, from Aruba to Zimbabwe.
Wherever you are in the world, this is YOUR world!
With Greece's trials and tribulations over the last few years it becomes increasingly important
for all of us in the Global Greek World to fight for the values and ideals passed down to us and for our
future as Hellenes.
21 March marks the beginning of Spring in Greece and the rest of the Northern
Hemisphere while March is traditionally a month of renewal and new beginnings…
Our household is no exception to this.
Our most precious and wonderful
stars came to life, both literally and figuratively, during the month of March!
Our little Miss 13 turns 14 at the end of the month, the little sweetheart who little
Miss 13 is Nona to turns 2 today, and with her, Global Greek World turns 5!!!
Hard to believe that it is already 5 years since the day we published
our first post, 5 years since we started our journey into the wonderful world
of the people we call Global Greeks, the world of the Hellenic Diaspora both in
Greece and in our vibrant and dynamic Global Greek communities abroad.
Over these 5 years, we have made it our goal to focus on the positive
aspects of Greece
and our people in the world, selecting and highlighting our Global Greek
shakers, movers and achievers.
We’ve focused on bright, creative, talented, dynamic and forward-looking
Global Greeks who have turned adversity into advantage and excelled both at
home and on the world stage. Despite the prevailing doom and gloom of the economic
crisis which Greece has had
to grapple with and which has led to dramatic changes across a broad spectrum
of Greek society and life in Greece,
these are the people who should serve as role models for the generations to
come.
We've chosen some of these great role models to be part of a new section we will be featuring on our site from today, a section we have named
We asked some of our Global Greeks the same 20 questions and told them to answer in any way they want! Well, we have had some really interesting responses which we are sure you will enjoy reading! Thoughtful and thought provoking indeed! Keep them coming!
In our first five years which have coincided with Greece's debilitating economic crisis, we have often been accused of sugar-coating the truth. It isn’t true. We
try to look on the bright side of the economic crisis, looking at the
opportunities and the benefits that can come out of such crises.
We’ve focused on Greece
and being Greek and all that that entails.
We’ve focused on things that have made us feel good about being Greek,
things that have made us feel good about Greece. Not that we haven’t done
our share of criticizing the powers that
be who have led this beautiful country into the worst debacle in its post war history, for their inactivity, inadequacy and general impotence to nip situations in the bud before they got out of hand, and the lack of controls in all forms of civil life.
Our Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and
Pinterest pages are active and interactive and cover all those subjects which are so relevant to our
lives as Hellenes in Greece
and abroad.
If you follow us you will know we discuss everything: from Athens' Magical, Unforgettable Olympic Games, the Aganaktismenoi demonstrations in Syntagma, and the naming issue of FYROM to Greek traditions, the Greek Yoghurts
and cheeses available in supermarkets in the USA and, of course, Mission/Pilgrimage/Campaign for the Repatriation of the Parthenon Sculptures which we support with passion!
In these 5 years we have tried to give something back to our homeland, to do something for Greece. Under the umbrella of Global Greek World we have set up and run initiatives dear to our hearts, initiatives which we believe in and will develop even further in the next couple of years. Global Greek of the Year
In 2012 we held our first Global Greek of the Year Poll. Over 20 nominations of Greeks from various parts of our Global Greek World who have honoured their Hellenism came from our readers.
The Honorary Global Greek of the Year Award went to Mikis Theodorakis, our legendary composer, for his unique and tremendous contribution to Greek music, art and culture, for giving us such a rich and inspiring musical heritage.
Greece's beloved international tenor, Mario Frangoulis,was our first ever Global Greek of the Year. Incidentally, Mario will be giving two charity performances today and tomorrow at New York's Lincoln Centre. The concerts in aid of New Yorkers for Children and Apostoli-Mission in Greece are sold out! Well done! Way to go Mario!
Visionary brand strategist Peter Economides came in in 2nd place
Every Honest Greek Citizen, not surprisingly, polled 3rd
Greek beaches and tourist spots were never in crisis but the unrest, the political and financial instability driven by the omnipresent threat of bankruptcy along with the persistent strikes almost derailed Greece's major income earner. The
economic crisis and the foreign media's exaggeration of the problems
brought thousands of cancellations from people who had planned to visit
but were worried that they would end up stranded. Along
with other Global Greek groups and organisations we decided we had to
do something to showcase the beauties of Greece and encourage people to
continue to take their holidays here, especially our Global Greeks. With various posts promoting the beauties of Greece and showcasing all the positive aspects as well as the hundreds of high profile visitors such as Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson, John Travolta, Russell Crowe, even the Kardashians! We try to encourage EVERYONE to do the same, to Visit Greece this Summer and not only telling them that Greece is beautiful all year round! You can check out some of our posts on the relevant section of our blog.
Our Keep Calm and Come to Greece Poster
As part of our Visit Greece this Summer campaign, we have also run 2 very successful
World Tourism Day Photo Competitions asking people to submit a photo of
Greece for readers to vote for. We got over 200 magnificent photos last
year and we set it to music... Watch the video of all the entries in the sidebar of our blog or on our Global Greek World You Tube Channel!
Over 200 magnificent photos of Greece make up this gorgeous poster
The Buy Greek initiative started as a way of supporting and promoting Greek products and Greek jobs. It is aimed at encouraging people to support Greek
products and services in the widest sense of the word and refers to all
the things available in Greece, from physical products of the land or its
industries to Greece's rich and unique cultural heritage, and
everything in between, on land or sea.
This includes supporting
industries that have a positive impact on the economy and sustain jobs
in Greece because ultimately that is the only way forward... In brief, anything that's Greek owned, produced, invented or made in Greece.
Keeping it in the family: this was created by our little Miss 13
As a by-product of this initiative, we have run a successful Buy GREEK for Xmas Facebook Campaign for the last three Christmases, asking people to prefer something Greek for their Christmas gifts each year. Last year we even had prizes for 5 lucky participants!
One of the many fantastic cover pictures created for
Μην κοιτάς τι κάνει
η πατρίδα
για σένα, Κοίτα τί μπορείς ΕΣΥ να κάνεις για ΑΥΤΗ...
Global Greeks for Greece
is about mobilising Greece's dynamic and resourceful diaspora, a pretty
well untapped and underutilised asset, and showcasing those individuals and organisations coming
through for our homeland. We even started a Facebook Page called Enforce the Smoking Ban in Greece! Don't Back Down! hoping that we could do something to help in that respect!
Each of these initiatives will be developed extensively in the very near future, along with others as they come up! Stay tuned!
We welcome your suggestions and feedback on what you see and what you would like to see more of on GGW. We will be more than happy to follow-up.
Our thanks to all of YOU, our friends and followers around the world for your amazing and inspiring support these last 5 years! At GGW as we call it, we look forward to a stronger and more dynamic future. Our homeland is our inspiration, preserving our wonderful heritage for our children and yours is our objective.
We thank each and everyone of you for joining us on our journey and hope you will stay with us!
Special thanks must also go to all those friends who have been supportive and generous, donating prizes for our competitions and the prize draws.
With everyone's help we can do so much!
As Peter Economides says...
ΓΙΝΕΤΑI
or as We say...
YES, Greece CAN!
Let's do it!
At Global Greek World, We ♥ Greece...and it shows!
Join the conversation - help us spread the word Follow us on Twitter or Instagram
Haralambos
(Bobby) Tzanetatos Global Greek Businessman/Philanthropist Panama
Haralambos (or Bobby as he prefers to be known) Tzanetatos, is one of
our most amazing Global Greeks!
Bobby left his native Sami in the recently earthquake stricken Ionian
island of Kefallonia at the age of 16, in 1950 with one dream, one goal… to get
enough money together to buy a car. That, he told me many years ago when we
first met, was the only ambition he had when he went to Panama to join
his uncle who was working there. He worked hard and got enough money to buy
himself a car, but he did so much more than that.
Now one of Panama's wealthiest and most 'connected' citizens, Bobby, an astute
and hard-working businessman has never forgotten his origins, his island, his
people or his family values, remaining above all, true to himself, with
enormous humility, generosity and a helping hand always extended to aid those
less fortunate than he – a philanthropist in every sense of the word.
Influential, dynamic and forward thinking but characteristically low
profile and unpretentious, Bobby, like so many of our
Global Greeks, has put in a lot of time, effort and resources to ensure the
Greek flag is flown with pride and honour in their part of the world. At the
height of ex-President Noriega’s falling from grace, shortly before he was
exiled, Bobby even spent a couple of days on the pretext of importing arms in
containers marked as New Zealand Butter, simply because he was on the opposite
side.
As Greece's Honorary Consul in Panama for many years now, he has used
every single weapon he has to assist his home country and his countrymen when
needed.
Bobby has used the economic benefits he worked so hard to attain
and was fortunate to amass to benefit the not-so-fortunate. He has contributed
to many projects and charities in Panama and Miami, donating time and money and
work behind the scenes for the benefit of Greece and all things Greek in that
part of the world. He has donated the funds and the land for building the
ATHENA (ATENEA) Greek School in Panama and has also created the
Museum adjacent to it.
Deeply religious and having offered a great deal to the Greek Orthodox Church,
Bobby has been honoured with the title of Archon by the Patriarch of Constantinople.
Given the special honour of hosting Bobby when he came to the other side
of the world to meet his product suppliers, I took him on a tour of the city
and took great pride in showing him around our city’s Greek Community Centre
and of course our Greek Orthodox Church, Evangelismos tis Theotokou. I had the
keys to the church as a committee member and he wanted to light a candle… You can imagine the look on the face of the
treasurer to find a couple of crisp 100 US Dollar bills in the pagari, when he opened
it the next day.
When Archbishop Christodoulos of Greece was in Miami for the liver transplant he was going
to get it was Bobby's house he was staying at and it was Bobby's cousin, the
lifesaving transplant surgeon Andreas Tzakis who would perform that operation.
Things didn't work out for him but that Christmas, Bobby came to Athens with Andreas
Tzakis and went to see the ailing Archbishop in his home in Filothei.
The next evening Bobby, with his long-time friend and business
associate, John Scurtis of Miami,
held a small gathering really to honour Andreas Tzakis... We count ourselves
lucky to have been among those invited to that function, simply because we were
able to hear first hand the amazing stories of unheralded philanthropy from the
people who had been the recipients...children, parents and others who had been
touched by the magic hands of Dr Tzakis, the welcomed assistance of Bobby and
of his close friends in Miami, John and Evangeline Scurtis, two wonderful
people, two wonderful Global Greeks, who
have also made it their life’s work to willingly and generously help people in
need.
The Greek mother of a child who had been operated on by Dr Tzakis some
years before told us how they arrived in Miami
to be greeted by John and Bobby at the airport... at Bobby's request John
introduced Bobby as his chauffeur!
Sadly, life has not been as kind to the Tzanetatos family on a personal
level… 10 years ago they lost their daughter Irmita in a freak road accident
when she was only 21. 3 years ago their son-in-law, died while on holiday in Greece, and last
year they lost another beloved daughter, Lucy. So much tragedy to people who
have done nothing but good for their people, whether in Panama or in Greece.
In Greece and in Kefalonia, and Sami in particular, the open hearted
generosity of Bobby Tzanetatos, who lets no call for help from his countrymen
go unanswered, is well-known but not always recorded, as he is also a very
private man working quietly and anonymously much of the time.
In Panama,
apart from the Greek school and Museum, Bobby has contributed to many charities
and philanthropic causes. He has established the Lucy Tzanetatos Neurological
Foundation and his latest project is the
development of a giant hospital complex in Panama, a bio-feedback clinic in honour
of his daughter Lucy doing bio-feedback studies and the Lucy Tzanetatos Home
which provides free lodging, medical care, meals, clothing and activities for
mothers who have very sick children in the hospital and have nowhere to stay.
Bobby’s ethos and drive means that despite his personal tragedies he
continues just as he has done for so many years, working hard and heavily
involved in his numerous business interests, which are wide and varied, and
encompass supermarkets, real estate and shipping, to name but a few.
From us at Global Greek World, we want to
thank him for all he has done for Hellenism and wish him a very happy nameday today. May he be blessed with many many more in the years to come!
