NEW YORK – The Hellenic-American Chamber of Commerce (HACC) cocktail reception in honor of newly appointed Consul General of Greece in New York Konstantinos B. Konstantinou, generously sponsored by the Kyma Group, was held at Kyma – Flatiron on October 24.

HACC Board of Directors President Athas Ioannou gave the welcoming remarks and thanked everyone for attending the event in honor of Consul General Konstantinou, congratulating him on his new position, noting that “in a very short time he has become our friend and he has shown that he is very excited about working with us and the community… We look forward to the future.”

Steve Tenedios then welcomed everyone on behalf of himself and his Kyma partners and also welcomed His Grace Bishop Athenagoras of Nazianzus, Fr. Gregory, and Fr. Christos Pappas who were also present. Tenedios noted that meeting Consul General Konstantinou over the summer, “I was immediately impressed with his open-mindedness and his sincere concern for his fellow Greeks in the U.S. and the Diaspora.”

“He shared his vision for the future of the Greek Consulate here in New York and I found it to be a breath of fresh air,” Tenedios said, adding, “I look forward to seeing the vision that he shared coming to fruition during his tenure here in New York.”

Head of the Consulate’s Department of Economic and Commercial Affairs Nikolaos Thomopoulos offered his greetings and best wishes to Konstantinou, noting that he and his colleagues in his office are ready to support him – and to work with HACC – and wished him a very successful mission in New York.

Consul of Greece in New York Dimitris Papageorgiou in his remarks noted that Konstantinou is an experienced diplomat and though there are many challenges ahead, “together, I’m sure your tenure will be successful and will have a more than positive mark at the end of it.”

Consul General Konstantinou then thanked everyone and mentioned the upcoming event at the Consulate on October 28 with a large group of youngsters scheduled to attend: “Should I tell them how brave Greece was back on October 28, 1940… I should tell them that they should be proud because they are Greek and being Greek is a great source of pride, this is something I want to tell you also, we all have something in common, we are all prominent professionals… and Greece is so proud that this Greek-American community has done so well throughout all these decades and what unites us all is one thing, Greece, the love for Greece, and this is something we have to preserve, our culture and our heritage – this is our obligation and this is something we should pass on to our children. I’m so happy to see so many young people here today, this is fantastic, and I look forward to working with the youth to further enhance this heritage and this culture in the U.S.”

Konstantinou then spoke about one project in particular he is working on: “In 2023, one of my biggest projects is to bring an amazing exhibition which is taking place right now in the Benakis Museum about the Asia Minor Catastrophe. As you know, in 2023 we are celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Treaty of Lausanne, it’s very important for Greece, its history and for its future as well, so what better than to host this exhibition in the U.S., because it’s about immigration, it’s about your fathers and grandfathers who came to the U.S. without a penny and tried their best for their families and for themselves, it’s about politics, it’s about culture, it’s about everything, because in today’s diplomacy, everything is intertwined and we have to bear in mind that this is very important. I look forward to working with all of you to make this project a reality.”

Tenedios then commented on his roots in Asia Minor and the Consul General’s vision for bringing the Benakis exhibition to the U.S., adding that they are looking for the ideal venue. “It cannot be in a basement, it cannot be a church hall, it has to be something that’s worthy of our history of 100 years, worthy of the Genocide that took place and many of you in this room don’t know about, I suggest you look it up, and I would like your help, because I committed to help the Consul General and I think it’s one of the worthiest causes, timeliest causes right now, and you don’t bring an exhibition like this from Greece on a whim or on a moment’s notice,” Tenedios said. “It’s going to take the right space, the right place, it’s going to take the right help, it’s going to take some pockets, and that’s really why we’re here tonight to welcome the Consul General, to share his vision, and help his vision come to fruition.”

Among those present were HACC Chairman Clay Maitland, Advisory Board Co-Chair Nancy Papaioannou, Solomon Asser, Hellenic Medical Society of New York President Dr. Panagiotis Manolas, AHEPA Supreme President Jimmy Kokotas, Supreme Governor Region 3 Ted Stamas, District 6 Governor Dean Moskos, Lou Katsos, Dr. George Liakeas and his wife Nicole Contos, award-winning broadcast journalist John Metaxas, and National Herald co-editor/publisher Eraklis Diamataris

Dimitris Mpasis, the popular Greek singer currently on his 10th anniversary tour in the U.S., was also in attendance, along with another talented singer Aphrodite Daniel.

More information about the HACC is available online: https://www.hellenicamerican.cc/.