“Hoisting our flag with feelings of jubilation and pride, because we know that it symbolizes the struggles and the blood shed by our ancestors, it reminds us all that the fight to defend freedom is an ongoing one". This remark was made by the Archbishop of America Elpidophoros during the ceremony of raising the Greek flag in Bowling Green, in the presence of the Presidential Guard Guardsmen, members of the Greek-American community and students of Greek schools, under the coordination of the Greek Associations of Greater New York.
Present, also, he was at the ceremony, including, our ambassador in Washington, Alexandra Papadopoulou, the ambassador at the permanent delegation of Greece to the United Nations, Evangelos Sekeris, the ambassador to the permanent delegation of Cyprus to the United Nations Andreas Chatzichrysanthou, and the consul general of Greece in New York Konstantinos Konstantinou.
The Archbishop of America, originally credited to the members of the Federation of Greek Associations of Greater New York, because thanks to their efforts the great honor of establishing the event of raising the Greek flag was achieved. Subsequently, he wholeheartedly thanked the Euzones of the Presidential Guard for their presence reminiscent of his immortal heroes 1821 and for their participation as noble freedom fighters in this shocking event.
“With their dignity, with their majesty and with their glory they honor us especially and bring to mind the same pride, the same courage, the same courage and heroism of the fighters of 1821", underlined Archbishop Elpidophoros. "We are always aware of our duty to remember and teach the deeper meaning of the national anniversary of March 25, and our duty is to promote the principles of freedom and human dignity throughout the world, with our thoughts and to our Ukrainian brothers who are fighting for their freedom and territorial integrity", he added.
Subsequently, as he pointed out, "in blue and white we see the purity and humanity of the Virgin Mary and the beauty and splendor of the Greek land and we always want it to wave with love and with devotion and with faith and with a strong sense of duty. We will never forget March 25", concluded “because it is our national anniversary or, even more precisely, the anniversary of our national rebirth, a day that exists every day of the year when we choose to remember our heritage and our history and our most precious ideal of freedom".