{"id":18561,"date":"2012-02-29T07:03:22","date_gmt":"2012-02-29T12:03:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/?p=18561"},"modified":"2012-02-29T09:59:43","modified_gmt":"2012-02-29T14:59:43","slug":"hellenic-ball-a-party-with-a-purpose","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/2012\/02\/hellenic-ball-a-party-with-a-purpose","title":{"rendered":"Hellenic Ball: A Party With A Purpose"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
2010 Hellenic Ball<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

If two round trip tickets to Greece and a week\u2019s stay at the Hilton Hotel on someone else\u2019s dime sounds like your kind of vacation, then you\u2019ve got to try your hand at winning it, as it\u2019s the top prize at this year\u2019s Hellenic Ball. And if you want to win, you have to be in attendance because that\u2019s the only place tickets will be sold. Actually, the Greek trip is just one of eight other vacation trips that will be raffled off on the night.<\/p>\n

The biennial ball this year will be held under the theme \u201cSunset In Santorini\u201d in the Imperial Ballroom at Atlantis, Paradise Island on Saturday, March 10. Ball patrons will be entertained with music from \u201cA Night in Athens\u201d Trio (George Antonopoulos, Nic Trivelas and Joanna), a Greek band out of South Carolina, and The Falcons with their traditional Soca, Calypso, down home sounds.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a fun, cultural ball,\u201d says Alexandra Maillis-Lynch. \u201cIt\u2019s a welcoming ball, which people can feel comfortable coming to alone because they don\u2019t need a partner to dance, because Greek dancing is all about line dancing.\u201d People who want to have some idea of the kind of dancing that will be done at the ball can participate in free Greek dance lessons that will be offered by the Greek community on Thursday, March 1 at the Greek Orthodox Church on West Hill Street. Greek mezedes (hors d\u2019oeuvres) will be served.<\/p>\n

While having fun, patrons will also support a worthy cause, as funds raised will aid the Ranfurly Homes for Children. It\u2019s a charitable arm of the ball that has been taking place every two years since 1974. Past recipients have included the Cancer Caring Centre, the home for the aged, the Governor General Youth Award, the Police Force Dependents Fund, the Hope Centre, Boy Scouts, and Princess Margaret Hospital\u2019s burn unit.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe purpose really of establishing the Hellenic Ball was to bring the Greek community closer through all walks of life in the Bahamian community to recognize our customs, dancing, cooking and to become familiar with them, but it\u2019s primary purpose is to benefit charities,\u201d said ball founder Tony Klonaris. \u201cThe ball represents an instrument through which we Greeks, a small segment of Bahamian society, can contribute greatly.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Hellenic Ball all started as a result of Bahamian Greeks celebrating Greek Independence Day, one of the most important holidays in Greece, which represents their independence from the Turks. Like Greeks around the world, Bahamian Greeks celebrated it like a church event at their church that was founded in the 1930s. That changed in 1973 when they decided to take the event public and donate proceeds to a deserving Bahamian charity. In 1974, they made their first donation to the Ranfurly Homes for Children<\/p>\n

With this year\u2019s donation to the Ranfurly Homes for Children, the Hellenic Ball has come full circle 38 years later. Klonaris estimates that to date they have donated over $600,000 to charities since 1974.<\/p>\n

Maillis-Lynch who is president of the board of directors at the Ranfurly Homes for Children said it was fantastic, that the home would benefit this year. She says they really need the money.<\/p>\n

With a diverse cross-section of the community attending the ball every two years, with other nationalities outweighing the Greeks, there is a variety of food on offer to satisfy all palates, along with a few Greek specialties \u2013 desserts, and lamb and Greek salads, of course.<\/p>\n

Tickets for the black-tie optional Hellenic Ball are $250 per person. Cocktails are served from 7 p.m. to 8 pm., with dinner following. To RSVP, telephone 359-0999 or 424-0400.<\/p>\n

By Shavaughn Moss
\nThe Nassau Guardian
\nPublished: February 24, 2012<\/p>\n

A NIGHT IN SANTORINI
\nWhat: Hellenic Ball
\nWhen: Saturday, March 10
\nWhere: Imperial Ballroom, Atlantis, Paradise
\nTime: Cocktails 7 p.m. \u2013 8 p.m., dinner to follow
\nEntertainment: \u201cA Night in Athens\u201d Trio (George Antonopoulos, Nic Trivelas and Joanna) and The Falcons
\n<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Donation: $250 per person Dress: Black-tie optional <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

To RSVP: Telephone 359-0999 or 424-0400<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The biennial Hellenic Ball will be held on March 10 under the theme “Sunset In Santorini\u201d. While having fun, patrons will also support a worthy cause, as funds raised will aid the Ranfurly Homes for Children.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_10223285771444175_51037792744":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[61,133,104],"class_list":["post-18561","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-charity","tag-community","tag-culture"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18561","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18561"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18561\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18561"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18561"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18561"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}