By Hector Flores
According to Mark Vassilakis, member of the parish council and outreach committee, the picnic takes place every year and serves as one of the church¹s fundraisers.
³It¹s more of a celebration for the children as they finish the church¹s Sunday School Program,² he said. ³The event happens every year around this time.²
Parish Background
Holy Trinity was started in 1924, as the first Orthodox Christian church on Long Island. Early on, members were of early Slavic dissent, but since the 1970s the church has shifted to English speaking services. As a result, the ethnic composition shifted and the church has attracted many religious converts from other races.
³I¹m Greek and my wife is Chinese, our pastor, Alexander [Garklaus], is Russian and Father John Gravy is a convert from Catholicism,² said Vassilakis, who has been a member of the congregation since December 2000. ³I was born into the faith and was a member of the Greek Diocese, but what attracted me to this church was the English services and friendliness of the parish, and their emphasis on outreach.²
