BINGHAMTON, NY – Another tower of Hellenism was reactivated on May 27 at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church, located at 214 Court Street in Binghamton. The Order of AHEPA, the largest Greek-American organization in the world, re-activated Binghamton Chapter #77, dormant for many years, but originally established on July 12, 1925 and renamed “Leonidas” Chapter no. 77.

The reactivation included 8 new “Leonidas” Ahepans, plus two new Ahepans from Hudson Odysseus Chapter 545. The initiation ceremony was performed in the Chapters landmark lodge room which was built in the 1930’s, which holds mementoes of historical Hellenistic achievements from years gone by.

A large delegation of AHEPA leaders, from neighboring chapters in Rochester and Middletown, NY participated in the ceremony. The chief installing/initiation officer was AHEPA Regional Supreme Governor, Tom Dushas from Rye, NY. He was assisted by Chris Pavlidis, President of Hudson Odysseus Chapter 545 and by Past Supreme Treasurer Mike Papapanu and Dennis Kiriazides, both Senior AHEPA Leaders in Rochester very involved in AHEPA’s Statewide Housing Foundation.

The reactivation of the “Leonidas” Chapter is in addition to the new AHEPA chapter in Middletown and the reactivated chapter in Schenectady all within the last year. In addition, the three local chapters, join chapters in Albany, Troy, Syracuse, and Rochester, giving upstate a substantial Hellenistic presence in their communities. They join the 20 other downstate Chapters, including the recently reactivated Port Jefferson Chapter, forming the largest statewide presence of any state in the United States. The state’s membership is expected to close the year at approximately 1,650 members. The Empire State, District 6, is expected to continue the growth, expansion and reactivation of their District, with additional chapters well into the remainder of this year and into 2019. The goal of AHEPA New York leaders is to reach 2,000 members by AHEPA’s 100th Anniversary celebration in Atlanta in 2022.

The state’s district convention in Hempstead, NY, took place June 15-17 and its National Convention will be held in Atlantic City, NJ the week of July 23.

It should be noted that AHEPA District 6, the Empire State, has performed well over the last five years. Their membership, their signature events, and all around fraternal performance, both upstate and downstate have lifted it to the number one district in the nation. AHEPA District 6 is a model of performance due to its leadership at the Chapter, District, and Supreme Lodge levels.