Opa! Greek festival shares culture, faith with local community

For the eighth year, the Central Georgia Greek Festival will offer locals the chance to experience some of the highlights of Greek culture including art, music, dancing and -- everyone's favorite -- the food!

Each year, about 3,000 people have come out to Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Church to enjoy a weekend of live Greek music and dance, delicious authentic cuisine, tours of the church and shopping, courtesy of vendors selling religious items, iconography, music and videos, and traditional Greek clothing and jewelry.

"We have several new vendors this year," said Emily Dermatas, the festival's pastry co-chairman. "We can't wait for the fun to start again. It's always so good to see our friends and neighbors come out to be Greek with us for a while!"

For Dermatas -- and for many of the people who pour countless hours behind the scenes into organizing this grand event -- the real purpose is fostering community.

"The biggest importance of this festival is that it exposes people to our faith and the Greek Orthodox church. For many people in Middle Georgia, this is their only exposure to the Greek culture, which has existed for thousands of years. It is a delight to hear people try new things and enjoy them, but it is even more important and exciting to see the celebration of similarities," she said.

"People get out and dance. It really just is fun. The Greek culture is a living culture. You can see people from babies to 90-year-olds dancing. You can see whole families together, celebrating and having a good time. It's contagious."

On Saturday, iconographer Father Anthony Salzman, who is coming from Athens, "will do the holy writing," Dermatas said. "Iconographers tell the story of the scripture through pictures. This is definitely something new this year that we are very excited about.

Each day, the church's Father John Stefero will lead church tours, explaining the history, the iconography and the vestments that he wears.

"The church hasn't changed in 2,000 years and the language has stayed the same, but it is very much living today," Dermatas said.

Dermatas has been an enthusiastic volunteer for the festival for many years.

"I've been a member of this church for 37 years. I've taught Sunday School and been a choir director and now I'm a chanter. I also work as a festival organizer. I'm just a crazy Greek lady looking to share my passion, if you can't tell!" she laughed.

"We really want to help celebrate the feeling of community. We have a loyal following of people who come (to the festival) year after year," she said. "The other clergymen from the other churches also come through, introducing themselves to Father John, and helping them all create a community of faith in the Middle Georgia area. It is really wonderful."

Central Georgia Greek Festival

When: 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Oct. 23-24 and 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Oct. 25

Where: Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Church, 859 First St.

Cost: Free admission

Information: 478-621-0744; www.centralgeorgiagreekfestial.com

This story was originally published October 22, 2015 at 4:18 PM with the headline "Opa! Greek festival shares culture, faith with local community ."