Volume 22 Issue 2 November/December 2017

This newsletter is published every two months, excluding summer months, by the Public Relations Ministry team of Claudia Bogris, Annette Takla and Antoinette Takla. The deadline for the next issue is December 1, 2017. This newsletter is named after our patron saint, St. Anthony of the Desert.

What time is it? Harvest Fest Time! November 9, 10, 11 Harvest Fest is all the best parts of our Festival: delicious food, shopping, raffles, entertainment... and so much more! Harvest Fest is the weekend of the New Jersey Teacher’s convention so the public schools are closed on Thursday and Friday. Many kids with free days = parents looking for something to do. And boy do we have fun planned for them!

The Fun Bus will roll up every day from 1-4pm. It’s an interactive experience of fun and fitness for children. And on Friday and Saturday from 5-8:30pm, we’ll have a mobile video game theater for 28 players at a time and an exciting lightshow. And while the kids are playing, parents can enjoy our delicious food and shop. The kitchen has been hopping, with our dedicated cooks and bakers preparing all of your favorites. The gift baskets are increasing daily, as is the 50/50 pot. There are wines and cheeses ready to be tasted. The Harvest Shoppe and Linen and Sweater outlets will be ready for customers. But none of this happens without YOU. This is our Harvest Fest—and such an important part of our Church family life. And although we may be tired by the end, nothing feels better than working together for a common goal!

Did you:

Sell your raffle tickets and turn in all the money? The faster the pot has some heft, the more tickets we will sell. (You know how everyone buys lottery tickets when the pot is $100 million, but $10 million just doesn't seem worth it? Same psychology here!) Turn in your kitchen/bakery donation? (Did you know that “back in the day,” every family cooked these trays at home? The donation is for the ingredients in lieu of each family buying their own.) Tell everyone you know—from work, school, family and community to join us? We want the hall to be overflowing with customers! Like our Facebook page and share social media posts and the website: www.stanthonyharvestfest.com?

Solicit gift basket items? Donate a basket from your family? Sign up for a shift (or three)? Put in for vacation days? Set aside time to work on set up? Please don’t wait to be asked! It’s amazing how working together builds friendships. Reach out to Brian Scarpa and George Tewfik.

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The Kitchen Has Been Hopping!

What’s For Dinner?

Picture a cold day in January. You are cooked out from Thanksgiving and Christmas but the family is all home and it would be so great to have some comfort food. No problem! Open your freezer and you have lots of choices because you were smart enough to stock up on the Festival’s Frozen Food menu of grape leaves, string cheese, stuffed cabbage and pierogis, spanakopita, and meat and spinach pies! And there’s even kourabiedes and a frozen pie ready to heat and serve for a delicious dessert. (Because you bought enough to serve or bring for holiday meals, and bought one extra apple cranberry pie just for you.) See the order forms available at Coffee Hour and stanthonyharvestfest.com for all the details of food and pie options. But don’t wait too long—these goodies are sure to sell out.

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Wine and Cheese and Music and Shopping and Dining and ... Feeling a little too “mature” for the fun bus and video arcade? How does wine and cheese and live music sound? Shopping at a beautiful country store and finding just the thing you didn’t know you needed until you saw it? Filling out your fall/winter wardrobe with beautiful sweaters at ridiculous prices? Giving your bedroom a refresh? Taking a chance on a giant 50/50 or amazing gift basket? Or how about eating 6 delicious meals over 3 day and never having the same thing twice? We hear you. The Harvest Fest has it all! The terrific entertainment lineup continues, with Jared Lindbloom performing on Thursday night (he’s back by popular demand from Bergen Street Fest) and Luis Camacho, with Jodie and The Normals, returning this year for another beautiful evening of music on Friday night. The menu has everything—and more. (And if you don’t think that sentence makes sense, well you are just going to have to come to the food line and bakery to see for yourself.) All the classics with some fun additions, like baklava ice cream sundaes. Bring your appetite!

Look for our ads in the Better Living

Section of The Record on November 5,6,7 and in the North Valley Suburbanite and Twin-Boro—covering 30 towns—on November 2.

Get the word out!

Talk it up to your friends

Hand out postcards

Post flyers at local shops Visit our Website stanthonyharvestfest.com Like and share our Facebook page @StAnthonyFestival

Follow us on Instagram @stanthonyharvestfest

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Save the dates from now: Next year’s Bergen Street Fest is already booked for September 15-16, 2018.

Bergen Street Fest: Fantastic AND Fruitful! Co-chairs Brian Scarpa and George Tewfik deserved every second of the standing ovation they received at the October 8 Coffee Hour for their amazing work in delivering an event that exceeded even our most hopeful estimates!

7,800 guests over 2 days

It was an incredible two days, with sunny skies and summer-like weather—and crowds beyond our imagination. Thank you to everyone who worked so hard at the event—from admissions to working the fryers and cotton candy machine to supervising children’s activities to selling desserts and beverages (adult and otherwise) to manning the grounds. Thank you to everyone who worked so hard in advance, from baking to the monumental task of setting up tents and fencing. And most especially, thank you to George and Tiffany and Brian and Christeen for the 9 months of work to make this a reality!

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Tons of yummy treats, including 2,200 Fried Oreos

46 marketplace vendors

12 food trucks

Animal Blessings

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12 live

musical acts

and a classic

car show

15 kegs of beer in the popular Beer Garden

4 extra trips to Restaurant Depot and too many garbage bag changes to count!

Tons of fun for the kids

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You’re an Antiochian Woman (Whether you know it or not) How can we help our parish, others in need and grow in our faith? Did you know that every woman in our Church is an Antiochian Wom-an? This year we are introducing a format to accommodate all the women in our parish, older, younger and in between. The plan is to meet every other month on Sundays at coffee hour for brief updates and to exchange ideas. Then, every other month we will meet on Thursday evenings for short meetings. (Dates will be distributed). We hope that this schedule will allow the maximum number of women to attend and become engaged. Consider joining us and bring your ideas as we get together and share a sisterhood of faith, good works and some fun! November 16 is our next meeting. Watch the bulletin for more details. Betty Gakos, President

Blessing of the Backpacks

On the opening day of Church School, our children brought backpacks to receive a special blessing as they begin the school year.

Young Men’s Auxiliary for Christian Education

A new ministry has formed at St Anthony’s. Guided by two former Church School teachers, Jim Bogris and Jim Tweel, it is

comprised of young men who are interested in supporting Church School and Teen SOYO. Father Joe convened the first meet-ing and began a discussion about an everyday parental dilemma: when should children be allowed to have smart phones and what limits to impose. Also discussed was the broader topic of the current divisive-ness in America. Future meetings will be focus on sharing concerns and gaining knowledge and encouragement from each other. If you are interested in participating in this ministry, please speak to Fr. Joseph or Nike Bach.

Creative Arts Awards Awards Sunday showcased the beautiful Creative Arts writing, poetry, art, photography and multimedia presentation of our students. And each child had the opportunity to receive recognition from our parish.

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Stratos Mandalakis Shares a New Type of Ministry for our Youth and Young Adults We know that the work we do together—from Festivals to raising funds for Special Olympics to enjoying each other's friendship through various clubs—is wonderful and important. But we also know it is not "enough." We can't leave God out in the process. But being an Orthodox Christian isn’t easy. There is often a divide between what we believe and whether we are applying it in our daily lives. St. Anthony's is adopting some of the wonderful programs of Y2AM.org, a ministry team of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, to inspire youth and young adults to live out their relationship with the Lord and His Church on a daily basis. And this couldn't be more important, since 60% of all American Christian children raised in a church leave between their high school and college years. It’s not enough for Christians to simply be informed: they must be formed. They are to be transformed in the light of Christ into the people, the saints, God has called us to be. Be the Bee is a famous YouTube series in which short video podcasts cover every aspect of Orthodoxy in a concise way that invites the viewer to consider the information and then apply it to his or her daily life. Research has shown this series has not only re-engaged Orthodox Youth but has brought non-believers and non-Orthodox Christians to Christ and His Church all over the world. The second ministry includes a comprehensive and integrated set of resources for youth and young adults designed for parish, camp and family use. The goal is great ministry in our communities that are also supported in every home, because Christian education can't be handled by the institution of the Church with little or no follow through at home. This year’s theme is The Fruits of the Holy Spirit. Members of the Young Men’s Educational Auxiliary, James Gakos and Dino Mavropoulos, have teamed up with Father Michael and me. We will be using this new method which will include the Teens, their parents and the facilitators in a multi-tiered, relational approach in which each fruit of the Holy Spirit will be explored through discussion, sharing, prayer/worship, and social activities on a monthly basis that will integrate parish, family and everyday life with each Christian concept so it grows and becomes part of the child’s life. Most importantly, we will strive to grow in Christ as we work, play and pray together. So how can you help make this a success? Please pray for us, and for this ministry. And think about making each of our daily goal as Orthodox Christians the following slogan from the Y2AM website: To help introduce people to Jesus Christ & to inspire them to live their relationship with the Lord and His Church on a daily basis.

“For ministry to work it must be Christ-centered and kingdom oriented,” Steve Christoforou, Y2AM director

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Calling all Scouts There are religious awards available for Girl Scouts and Boy (and Cub) Scouts through the Eastern Orthodox Committee on Scouting (EOCS).

The Saint George Award is for grades 1-3 and focuses on the foundation of faith, Christ's love and the Church.

The Chi Rho is for grades 4-5 and focuses on the individual's relationship to God, from Baptism and godparents to family and community service.

The Alpha Omega is for grades 6-12 and is focused on readings, parish life and spreading Orthodoxy.

There are requirements for each award (anyone who is a scout knows that even badges don't come without work!) which are available online at www.EOCS.org. At the end? Scouts know more about their faith Orthodoxy and there's a nice award that they are presented in Church. Scouts within the same grade group, both boys and girls, can work together in a group or individually, and each award has an element of community service. Are you a parent of a Scout? Please visit the Eastern Orthodox Committee on Scouting website and reach out to Deacon Peter for more information.

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It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas…. This Year’s Christmas Show: Each of Us is Special in Our Own Way

This year’s Church School Christmas show will be held on December 17 after Liturgy. It will feature a skit and musical numbers that center on showing love and respect for one another. Students will be hard at work practicing music after Communion while older students will be busy practicing lines after Church School lets out. Directors Dana Bach Lindbloom and Cathy Giffen Ianni look forward to working with students and presenting the show.

St. Nicholas Dinner on Friday, December 15 Due to popular demand, the St. Nicholas event is back to a dinner, to be held this year on Friday, December 15 after Vespers at 6pm. This evening, which honors our parish seniors, is sponsored by the families of the Teens and Church School. (Parents, look for more information: all families of Teens and Church School students will be asked to bring something as part of this potluck dinner.) The children will get a visit from St. Nicholas and enjoy craft activities, and all will enjoy dinner, fellowship and a musical performance by the Spirit of Orthodoxy.

Giving Season

The period from Thanksgiving through the end of the year is frequently referred to as the charitable giving season in the fund-raising world. Please consider the Joan Allen Memorial Scholarship in your end-of-year giving. A form is enclosed.

Christmas Wishes

You can send Christmas wishes to everyone in

our St. Anthony’s family by signing the giant (and beautiful) Christmas Wishes card in the Narthex. In lieu of the costs of cards and stamps, make a donation and sign the card and your wishes will be shared with our entire parish in the Christmas Eve bulletin. Look for a mailing and see Eve Meyer or Helen Chimel.

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Young at Heart

The exciting sounds of Las Alegrias Flamenco Dancers helped Young at Heart members and guests begin their organization’s fifth year of existence at St. Anthony’s in September. With flashing fans, snapping heels and clicking castanets, these talented dancers used graceful arm movements and intense feet clapping to display this wonderful dance form for us. In addition, we learned about the history of flamenco dancing which remains very popular in Spain and abroad today. Flamenco dancing draws its inspiration from Greek, Roman, Indian, Moorish and Jewish cultures. Developed over several centuries, this type of dancing resulted from the influences of such diverse regions as north Africa, southern Europe and the Near and Far East. The role of the flamenco dancer is to tell tales of love and lamentation through movement. Between dance sets, we were able to try using the fans and castanets that the danc-ers use. It was such an enjoyable program and very fitting to take place in September – Spanish heritage month! Our October meeting included a program on picture framing by an art expert and picture framer for celebrities. In November, we are expecting a visit from The Better Business Bureau. Our December meeting and annual Christmas party will take place at The Stony Hill Inn in Hackensack on December 14.

Young at Heart membership is growing and new members are always welcome!

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Welcome Beautiful Babies Gunnar Glen Bliwise was born on September 5, 2017. Gunnar is the beautiful son of Sandra and Ged Bliwise, little brother to Freya, and nephew of Pam Scapa and Hanneh Kalyoussef. God bless!

Maria Lucia, the beautiful baby daughter of Diana and Justin Scarpa, and little sister to Anthony and Olivia, was born on September 12, 2017. This is grandchild number 10 for her proud grand-parents, Alexis and Bob Scarpa. God bless!

Look Who Had a Big Birthday/Anniversary Happy 40th wedding anniversary to Allison and Mike Mascaro. Who let us know? Mother-of-the-bride Marge Kramer. Many years! Happy 85th birthday to Stella Vagias. God bless and many years! Do you have a big birthday (that you want to admit to) or anniversary that you’d like to share? Let us know.

Wedding Bells Natasha Wieschenberg and Robert Birmingham were married on October 7, 2017 at St. Anthony’s. Best wishes to the lovely couple and God bless! Nona Wieschenberg is the proud mother-of-the-bride.

Memory Eternal His Grace, our beloved Bishop ANTOUN departed this life on October 2, 2017. Memory Eternal!

Our former longtime parishioner Anna Hein departed this life on October 4, 2017. Memory Eternal!

A warm welcome to our new seminarian, Sub Deacon Symeon Halsell, Cayce and their son Nikolai. The family is from Southern California and are now living at St. Vladimir. Symeon is a first year student at seminary. We wish them all the best!

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Many thanks to the families and organizations who hosted coffee hour in September and October: Watkins and Eliopoulos; Church School; Hanna and Ziemba; Festival

Kick-Off Committee; Bogris; Leonida and Morar; Wieschenberg and Murtechaly Upcoming Hosts November 5 Hosts Needed 12 Festival 19 Hosts Needed 26 Giffen, Ianni and Johnson-Hakim

Are you participating in St. Anthony’s Grocery Store Gift Card Program? The Church purchases the gift cards at a 5% discount so for every $100 you spend at your chosen store, St. Anthony’s earns $5. You can purchase your gift cards on Sundays with cash or a check. This is an easy way to contribute to our Church without any cost. Look for Betty Gakos and

the “purple case.” Don’t go to the store without these gift cards in your wallet. (You might also like to buy a card with which to buy the food you’ll donate to the canned food drive. It’s like giving twice!)

Coffee Hour Please see Sandy Eliopoulos or Barbara Di Novi, who head up our coffee hour

committee, to sign up and for information on what to supply. Keep that happy banter emanating from our Church hall.

December 3 Hosts Needed 10 Klarer, McMinn, Battle and Takla 17 The Order of St. Ignatius 24 Hosts Needed 31 Hosts Needed

St. Anthony’s annual Canned Food Drive will run through Christmas Eve.

St. Anthony’s participates in this drive, sponsored by our Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese. Parishes are asked to collect food and to distribute to those in need in their local communities. Last year, St. Anthony’s parishioners generously donated 465 pounds of food to the Center for Food

Action (CFA), which operates seven sites in Bergen and Passaic counties. Please give generously and often, placing your donation in the containers located in the Fellowship hall vestibule or the container at the North Entrance.

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Mark Your Calendar November

Canned Food Drive continues

1 Becoming Truly Human discussion

2 Festival Baking at10am Young at Heart : Program by The Business Bureau

3 Festival Baking at 10am

5 Church School Unity Day/Saints Presentation during Church School

6 The Bible & Beyond 7-8:30pm

9, 10, 11 HARVEST FEST

12 No Church School

13 The Bible & Beyond 7-8:30pm

15 Parish Council Meeting at 7:30pm

16 Women’s Guild meeting

19 Myrrh bearer program begins

Church School Unity Day/Visit by Fr. Joseph/Fr. Michael

20 The Bible & Beyond 7-8:30pm

21 Feast Day of the Presentation of the Theotokos in the Temple

26 No Church School

27 Feeding the Homeless in Hackensack. See Christeen Scarpa to volunteer The Bible & Beyond 7-8:30pm

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Mark Your Calendar

December

Canned Food Drive continues through Christmas Eve

3 Parish Annual Meeting after Liturgy

Church School will have crafts and videos during meeting and children in Nativity Tableau will try on outfits

4 The Bible & Beyond 7-8:30pm

10 Christmas Show Rehearsal. Church Schools begins at 10am Women’s Guild meeting

11 The Bible & Beyond 7-8:30pm

14 Young at Heart: Christmas party at The Stony Hill Inn

15 St. Nicholas dinner hosted by Teen SOYO and Church School after

Vespers at 6pm

17 St. Ignatius Sunday; Church School Play. Church Schools begins at 10am

18 The Bible & Beyond 7-8:30pm

24 Christmas Eve; Nativity Tableau at 7:30pm, before Liturgy

Save these 2018 Dates

January 11: Women’s Guild Holiday Dinner

March 23, 24, 25: Women’s Lenten Retreat at The Antiochian Village

May 17, 18, 19: Yard Sale. Save the Date—and your start saving up your items to donate!

September 15-16: Bergen Street Fest 2018

St. Anthony Orthodox Church 385 Ivy Lane Bergenfield NJ 07621 201-568-8840(office) 568-6933 (fax)

www.stanthonybergenfield.org

A CHURCH OF THE ANTIOCHIAN ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN

ARCHDIOCESE

PASTOR: V. Rev. Joseph J. Allen

ASSISTANT PRIEST: Rev. Michael Ibrahim

PASTOR’S ASSISTANT: Archdeacon Peter Boulukos

PASTOR’S/CHURCH SECRETARY Genny Mandalakis

CATECHIST/LIBRARIAN: Nicholas Nagorny

CHOIR DIRECTOR and

PROTOPSALTES: Stratos Mandalakis

CHURCH SCHOOL DIRECTOR: Nike Bach

CHURCH SCHOOL SECRETARY: Irene Kavountzis

FELLOWSHIP: Stratos Mandalakis

HOUSE and GROUNDS: Michael McMinn

HALL RENTAL: John Ziemba, Sr.

INREACH/OUTREACH: Nike Bach and Stratos Mandalakis

PARISH COUNCIL: Chairperson: John Gakos

Vice Chairperson: William Gakos

STEWARDSHIP/MEMBERSHIP: Jim Tweel and Alice Ziemba

TEEN SOYO CO-PRESIDENTS: Althea DeBenedetto and Steven Nasseri

TEEN SOYO ADVISOR: Stratos Mandalakis

WOMEN’S GUILD: Betty Gakos, President

YOUNG AT HEART Ray Takla, President

Divine Liturgy celebrated in English on Sunday at 10AM

Confession before Liturgy

HIPAA Privacy Law: Any announcement to the parish concerning a

parishioner, family member or friend must be made in writing to

Fr. Joseph, and signed.

Did you move? Are you using a new email address?

A new phone number? Please keep your contact information up to date!

See Stewardship/Membership Co-Chair Alice Ziemba.

Reasons WhyPeople Donate

- to show sincere interest and regard for the youth of St. Anthony’s Church

- to express an appreciation for the blessings one has received

- to share in rewarding the academic excellence, religious and community commitment and strong moral character of Orthodox youth

- to remember special people and occasions in a significant manner

Help Make A Difference

Please send your donation to:

The Joan Allen Memorial Scholarship Fundc/o St. Anthony Orthodox Church

385 Ivy LaneBergenfield, New Jersey 07621

201-568-8840

Nam

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Address

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upport of St. A

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continuation of the Scholarship

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Indicate event and nam

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THEJOAN ALLEN MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP

HistoryThe Joan Allen Memorial Scholarship

commemorates the life of a very special person and friend, Joan Allen. Joan was a loving wife and mother, a devoted educator, a talented musician and a choreographer with a gift for performance. Her life was the embodiment of everything that was right with the world, harmony and peace, ambition yet compassion, creativity yet traditionality, and love, especially for children.

PurposeThe purpose of the Joan Allen

Scholarship is to encourage education on the collegiate or post high school level. It is presented annually to members of St. Anthony’s Church who desire to pursue academic or vocational studies. The scholarships are awarded based on the following criteria: participation in the liturgical and social life of the parish, contributions to parish life, participation in civic activities and community service, scholastic achievement, involvement in extracurricular activities and financial need.

Some of the Institutions of Higher LearningAttended by Past

Recipients

- Amherst College- Babson College- Boston College- Boston University- Bucknell University- The College of William & Mary- Fairfield University- Fairleigh Dickinson University- FIT- Fordham University- George Mason University- Ithaca College- James Madison University- Johns Hopkins University- Lehigh University- Marist College- Maryland Institute College of Art- Muhlenberg College- Providence College- Quinnipiac University- Ramapo College- Rowan College- Rutgers University- Sacred Heart University- Stevens Institute of Technology- St. John’s University- Syracuse University- Temple University- Trinity College- The United States Naval Academy- University of Delaware- University of Pittsburgh- University of Rhode Island- Villanova University- William Paterson University

TrusteesValerie Allen, Fran DeBellis (H), Lisa

Fares, John Gakos, Barbara Lockhart, Stratos Mandalakis, James Watkins and John Ziemba. The financial adviser is Edward Assile.

Future GoalsThe Joan Allen Memorial Scholarship

was first awarded in 1990 and serves as a living legacy to the memory of a remarkable person. Almost 100 scholarships have been presented to deserving students with over $60,000 of scholarship money awarded.

Since the cost of higher education continues to rise, an increase in the scholarships would help students better meet college expenses. In addition, with an increase in the number of church school children, there will be a proportional increase in the number of students applying for future scholarships. Therefore, it is important that the scholarship fund set a goal to actively increase this much needed revenue.

Your help will enable the scholarship fund to continue to provide this much needed assistance to St. Anthony’s students as they continue their education. Please help us to do even more and return the attached slip with your donation.