ITEM PHOTO BY OWEN O’ROURKE
Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy arrives with the Greek flag as Adam Varvounis, Giorgos Kopalidis and Paul Varvounis get ready to raise it.
By BRIDGET TURCOTTE
LYNN — The city raised a flag to Greek Independence Day Thursday afternoon.
In a small ceremony outside Lynn City Hall, Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy and Rev. George Tsoukalas of St. George Greek Orthodox Church raised the Greek flag, where it will fly for the next week.
“I always said I would go to Greece and, during the Summer of 2016, I did,” said Kennedy. “It was more beautiful than I could have imagined.”
For Kennedy, raising the flag of different countries is a way to celebrate the diversity of the city.
“I like to show that there are so many different cultures in Lynn,” she said. “Everybody is a part of the fabric.”
The ceremony was held to commemorate Greek Independence Day, which is observed on March 25, the day the War of Greek Independence began in 1821. The holiday coincides with the Orthodox Church’s celebration of the annunciation to the Theotokos, when Mary was told she would bear the son of God by the Archangel Gabriel.
As the flag was lifted, attendees sang the Greek national anthem.
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Students from the St. George Greek school wore fustanella, the traditional Greek formal dress for boys and men. The uniform became a symbol of rebellion during the revolution. The traditional dress for girls and women is red and white, said Lena Triantos, principal of the religious school.
Celebrations will continue at St. George Greek Orthodox Church on Saturday with the Feast of the Annunciation services at 9 a.m., divine liturgy at 9:30 a.m. and Doxology for the 25th of March at 10:30 a.m. Children will read poetry and sing traditional Greek songs, said Triantos. They will also sing the national anthems of Greece and the United States.
Following service on Sunday, the Greek School will present their Independence Day program of poems and songs to show their ethnic pride.
Bridget Turcotte can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @BridgetTurcotte.
