If you’ve ever attended one of the many ethnic festivals at Oak Park, give thanks to Helen Stathis. She gave this diverse community a great gift by having the vision to realize the benefit of celebrating unique cultural experiences and providing the leadership to make it happen.
Four decades ago, when Helen was the president of the St. Barbara Greek Orthodox Ladies’ Guild, members of the philanthropic group brainstormed ways to raise the significant amount of money needed to fund its charities and the construction of a new church building. She recalled for them the nostalgic days of the 1950s and 1960s when Greek families and church members gathered almost every Sunday afternoon for picnics and barbecues in local parks, including Tucker’s Grove, Nojoqui Falls, Leadbetter Beach, and Oak Park. She pointed out that whole families enjoyed sharing food, fellowship, culture, dance, and song — children, parents, and grandparents all together.
Why not plan a big fat Greek picnic for the entire community? And, she reasoned, why not schedule it for the weekend before the annual Old Spanish Days Fiesta, when there were plenty of visitors in town with not much to do and nowhere to go? Because of Oak Park’s unique dance floor, barbecue pits, tables, and beautiful tree-lined setting, she declared it was the best place to hold the celebration.