The lighting of various public buildings, monuments, museums, and bridges in New York, but also in many other American cities, such as Boston, San Francisco and elsewhere, added a grandeur and a general, public recognition to our celebration of the Greek Bicentennial.

Through the illumination of well-known buildings across the country, an important part of American society was informed about this historic and historical anniversary of Hellenism.

And, of course, no other building is more iconic or is better known in the U.S. and the world than New York’s Empire State Building.

Hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers saw it illuminated with the beautiful, glorious colors of the Greek flag on the night of the Bicentennial anniversary. They were informed that this illumination was intended to honor the struggle for the independence of the Greeks. 

Lighting buildings is not as simple as it seems. It requires work and, of course, there are costs. 

But above all, it requires Greek-Americans with purity – whose hearts beat with passion and love for Greece – who dedicate their time and effort to achieve this.

We owe the illumination of the Empire State celebrating the Bicentennial Anniversary to Tony Malkin, Chairman and CEO of the Empire State Realty Trust and the Senate of Hellenic American Organizations, who were able to achieve this wonderful result. 

As a Community, as Hellenes, as Greece, we owe them a big thank you. We are grateful to them for honoring our Diaspora ancestors, as well as the heroes and heroines who fought for the freedom of Greece.