Philadelphia, PA – The Federation of Hellenic-American Societies of Philadelphia and Greater Delaware Valley has announced that it will award the 2016 Eleftheria Medal to Athena and Nicholas Karabots for their philanthropic contributions to society. The award will be presented this Saturday evening at the annual dinner banquet at the Danielle Kousoulis Center (St. Thomas Greek Orthodox church, Cherry Hill, NJ). The Greek community is invited to attend.

The medal is awarded annually to individuals that have established an outstanding lifetime commitment to Hellenism. Previous recipients of the medal include, Rev’d Demetrios Constantelos Ph. D., D. D. , and Dr. Spiros Spireas, President of the American Hellenic Institute Foundation (AHI Foundation).

BIO’s

Nicholas (Nick) Karabots (Karabotsios) was raised in the South Bronx of New York City and attended the Greek-American Institute and, on completion of this elementary school, was accepted into the Bronx High School of Science which he completed in June of 1951 while in 1949 he enlisted in the U.S. Naval Reserve serving in a Reserve unit for 11 years. He is one of four children, that survived the epidemics of the 20’s and 30’s, of Constance (Hrisomalis) and George Karabots who migrated from Greece in the early 1920’s and in 1914.

Currently, at age 82 Nick is the owner of various publishing, printing, real estate and other companies which in addition to his controlling position in a NYSE Company cumulatively employ over 2,000 people in States as geographically apart as Indiana, Florida, Wisconsin, New York and various parts of Pennsylvania. Self-employed since 1966 and a resident of Whitemarsh Township in Southeastern Pennsylvania since 1958, Nick has, in addition to his other business activities, built Krasi, LLC d/b/a Karamoor Estate a vineyard and winery located in Fort Washington, Pa. In addition he has established the Karabots Foundation as a result of his experiences while part of several juvenile gangs while in his teens in the notorious South Bronx which then and now remains a gang and drug involved area of New York City….with the Foundation’s goal of exposing youth, in similar neighborhoods and while in their very early teens, to life’s possibilities beyond that which they are exposed to day after day.

Nick is married to Athena (Dikegoros) Karabots for 61 years which marriage has resulted in three daughters and ten grandchildren. Athena was raised in Hartford, Connecticut one of four children of Despina (Caratasios) and Jordan Dikegoros who migrated from Greece during the early 1900’s. Athena attended the Hartford public school system and further attended

Bay path Junior College in Springfield, Massachusetts from which she received an associate degree in business.While Athena worked before and after their marriage in May of 1955 she subsequently dedicated herself to their daughter’s growth and education and, given her deep interest in the Greek language and customs, later earned high marks as “Yiayia” from all of her grandchildren. In addition to her significant attention to family matters, she as well has involved herself in the mission of the Karabots Foundation and certain of the family’s property interests.

Nick and Athena look forward to many more years of business growth with the aim of continuing the stability and growth in employment that they have achieved for over 50 years within their privately owned businesses which, in turn, continue to provide the vehicle to support their ongoing dedication to the Karabots Foundation and its mission. As stated many times it is their belief that one should never forget where they came from and never fail to extend a hand by opening the eyes of our youth to the different life that exists beyond what some of our youth see today in most of our underserved communities.

Details

Greek Independence Day Dinner
Saint Thomas Greek Orthodox Church
Saturday, April 16th, 2016, 6:30 pm
Danielle Kousoulis Greek Cultural Center

Tickets:
Adults: $50
Children under 15: $20

For more information contact Federation President, Stathis Karandonis at 856-308-2877.